Amazing. Microsoft is now the part of the collective voices telling Google, 'Stop being evil.'

[onehandle]

Microsoft! Whoever thought that Microsoft would ever be on this side of the resistance.
___________

Google: Please Don’t Kill Video on the Web

Earlier today, Microsoft filed a formal competition law complaint with the European Commission (EC) against Motorola Mobility and Google. We have taken this step because Motorola is attempting to block sales of Windows PCs, our Xbox game console and other products. Their offense? These products enable people to view videos on the Web and to connect wirelessly to the Internet using industry standards.

You probably take for granted that you can view videos on your smartphone, tablet, PC, or DVD/Blu-ray player and connect to the Internet without being tied to a cable. That works because the industry came together years ago to define common technical standards that every firm can use to build compatible products for video and Wi-Fi. Motorola and all the other firms that contributed to these standards also made a promise to one another: that if they had any patents essential to the standards, they would make their patents available on fair and reasonable terms, and would not use them to block competitors from shipping their products.

Motorola has broken its promise. Motorola is on a path to use standard essential patents to kill video on the Web, and Google as its new owner doesn’t seem to be willing to change course.

In legal proceedings on both sides of the Atlantic, Motorola is demanding that Microsoft take its products off the market, or else remove their standards-based ability to play video and connect wirelessly. The only basis for these actions is that these products implement industry standards, on which Motorola claims patents. Yet when the industry adopted these standards, we all were counting on Motorola and every contributor to live up to their promises. Watching video on the Web is one of the primary uses of computers these days. And we’ve all grown accustomed to “anytime, anywhere” access to the Internet, often made possible by the Wi-Fi standard. Imagine what a step back it would be if we could no longer watch videos on our computing devices or connect via Wi-Fi, or if only some products, but not others, had these capabilities. That would defeat the whole purpose of an industry standard.

http://blogs.technet.com/b/microsoft_on_the_issues/archive/2012/02/22/google-please-don-t-kill-video-on-the-web.aspx

[drm604]

1. While I support Microsoft on this issue

I'm not so sure that I'd credit them with being "on this side of the resistance". They're taking a stand that is in their own financial interest. If their interest lay on the other side of this issue then they'd support the other side.

[onehandle]

2. Of course. They are still a corporation, but Google is clearly a threat to Internet freedom.

Including the freedom of their competition.

Google is trying to own the Internet. As much as I despise Facebook, they are probably Google's #1 thorn in their side. Google is having to pay celebrities and social media specialists to push Google+.

Microsoft is welcome to pile on and slow their tentacles.

[saras]

3. The web would be HUGELY better off without commercial video.