Comments on: Aikido, Retreat or War. What’s your Microsoft strategy? http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/ A daily round table on the tech industry with experts and callers from all over the globe. Join us as we pick apart the news and get to the meat of what\'s happening out there. Fri, 08 Aug 2008 18:37:19 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6 By: Charles Kelly http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-194713 Charles Kelly Mon, 09 Apr 2007 00:23:40 +0000 http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-194713 As someone with a very long history with Microsoft's Developer Relations Group. I can echo from the business/user side the amount of funding and programs that have been developed over the years to "woo" the developer community and ensure the success Mr. Saunders speaks of. In the last 5-7 years Microsoft seems to have lost some of that edge. Roughly co-inciding with Cameron Mhyrvold's hasty exit for "greener pastures" (catching the same limo were Silverberg, Tong, Roberts, Zagula, et al). More programs are targeted to the masses online. A well-conceived company could "take-back" that developer's mindset with well-planned programs and commitment to a longer process. Alec presents a straightforward view of relations with Microsoft. Join the family (Akido), get eaten (Retreat), or die (War) a quick financial death. And if competition scares you, please take the day off and stay home! Thanks, Charlie As someone with a very long history with Microsoft’s Developer Relations Group. I can echo from the business/user side the amount of funding and programs that have been developed over the years to “woo” the developer community and ensure the success Mr. Saunders speaks of.

In the last 5-7 years Microsoft seems to have lost some of that edge. Roughly co-inciding with Cameron Mhyrvold’s hasty exit for “greener pastures” (catching the same limo were Silverberg, Tong, Roberts, Zagula, et al).

More programs are targeted to the masses online. A well-conceived company could “take-back” that developer’s mindset with well-planned programs and commitment to a longer process.

Alec presents a straightforward view of relations with Microsoft. Join the family (Akido), get eaten (Retreat), or die (War) a quick financial death. And if competition scares you, please take the day off and stay home!

Thanks,
Charlie

]]> By: voipniche.com » Blog Archive » Evolving enterprise comms & Microsoft: it’s not just about mobility and FMC http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-194460 voipniche.com » Blog Archive » Evolving enterprise comms & Microsoft: it’s not just about mobility and FMC Sun, 08 Apr 2007 17:17:13 +0000 http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-194460 [...] post by Alec Saunders about the role of Microsoft in enterprise VoIP, which has spawned further [...] [...] post by Alec Saunders about the role of Microsoft in enterprise VoIP, which has spawned further [...]

]]> By: Steve http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-193392 Steve Sat, 07 Apr 2007 18:59:29 +0000 http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-193392 As someone who used to follow this space for a living and used to find time for aikido, I really enjoyed this post. One omission in my mind is the repercussions of the Tellme acquisition which gives Microsoft a network and infrastructure to deliver voice applications, furthering threatening the hardware business of the PBX incumbents. Why even own your telephony applications if you can lease them? But how Microsoft integrates the technology is still unclear The hardware vendors have been slow to understand that their verticalized model is a thing of the past, and don't have much in the way of experience in standardized software development (probably why Cisco bought a small company called Audium about six months ago). But I am not sure that they go away completely if they continue to stick to their current game plan (which appears to be wait until we lose business before we react.) Voice over IP, as I am sure you aware, is resource intensive and the protocols are complex. Microsoft may be able to put the phone on the desktop, and possibly set up a tiered system of LCSes, but will have to rely on someone else to get the packets from one point to another. The choice it seems to me for Nortel is to invest heavily in software or partner to provide enterprise versions of LCS, or see themselves relegated to a piece of the plumbing since a lot of the processing will be (is) done is specialized silicon. As someone who used to follow this space for a living and used to find time for aikido, I really enjoyed this post. One omission in my mind is the repercussions of the Tellme acquisition which gives Microsoft a network and infrastructure to deliver voice applications, furthering threatening the hardware business of the PBX incumbents. Why even own your telephony applications if you can lease them? But how Microsoft integrates the technology is still unclear

The hardware vendors have been slow to understand that their verticalized model is a thing of the past, and don’t have much in the way of experience in standardized software development (probably why Cisco bought a small company called Audium about six months ago). But I am not sure that they go away completely if they continue to stick to their current game plan (which appears to be wait until we lose business before we react.) Voice over IP, as I am sure you aware, is resource intensive and the protocols are complex. Microsoft may be able to put the phone on the desktop, and possibly set up a tiered system of LCSes, but will have to rely on someone else to get the packets from one point to another. The choice it seems to me for Nortel is to invest heavily in software or partner to provide enterprise versions of LCS, or see themselves relegated to a piece of the plumbing since a lot of the processing will be (is) done is specialized silicon.

]]> By: Signal to Noise » Microsoft and Voice: Win, Lose, or Draw http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-193337 Signal to Noise » Microsoft and Voice: Win, Lose, or Draw Sat, 07 Apr 2007 16:11:38 +0000 http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-193337 [...] Alec has written a fantastic essay about the Microsoft’s entrance into the voice software business, and he covers three strategies for co-existence with the Microsoft in this space. They boil down to 1> Compliment the Microsoft’s platform with your own innovations, 2> Get out of the business, or 3> Go toe-to-toe with the Microsoft. In a few year’s time, as with many things the Microsoft gets into, we’ll recognize that they own a pretty big piece of the space, and those non-Microsoft businesses left standing will have capitulated to the pattern outlined by Alec. Check it out. [...] [...] Alec has written a fantastic essay about the Microsoft’s entrance into the voice software business, and he covers three strategies for co-existence with the Microsoft in this space. They boil down to 1> Compliment the Microsoft’s platform with your own innovations, 2> Get out of the business, or 3> Go toe-to-toe with the Microsoft. In a few year’s time, as with many things the Microsoft gets into, we’ll recognize that they own a pretty big piece of the space, and those non-Microsoft businesses left standing will have capitulated to the pattern outlined by Alec. Check it out. [...]

]]> By: Is Microsoft a Threat to SMB Phone System Vendors? at removethelabels http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-192561 Is Microsoft a Threat to SMB Phone System Vendors? at removethelabels Sat, 07 Apr 2007 02:59:14 +0000 http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-192561 [...] CEO and blogger Alec Saunders has an excellent post about the impact that Microsoft will have on smaller players in the small medium business phone system marketplace with their release of their Office [...] [...] CEO and blogger Alec Saunders has an excellent post about the impact that Microsoft will have on smaller players in the small medium business phone system marketplace with their release of their Office [...]

]]> By: Digital Common Sense » Aikido, Retreat or War? Are you an Ostrich or a Ninja? What’s Your Exit Strategy? http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-192289 Digital Common Sense » Aikido, Retreat or War? Are you an Ostrich or a Ninja? What’s Your Exit Strategy? Fri, 06 Apr 2007 22:12:55 +0000 http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-192289 [...] Note: Sometimes I wonder if Alec tackles things like this just to drive us all to think and post. Sometimes he makes my head hurt. Aikido, Retreat or War. What’s your Microsoft strategy? [...] [...] Note: Sometimes I wonder if Alec tackles things like this just to drive us all to think and post. Sometimes he makes my head hurt. Aikido, Retreat or War. What’s your Microsoft strategy? [...]

]]> By: Moshe Maeir http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-192025 Moshe Maeir Fri, 06 Apr 2007 15:01:21 +0000 http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-192025 Thanks for the very interesting post! Thanks for the very interesting post!

]]> By: Skype Journal http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-191772 Skype Journal Fri, 06 Apr 2007 11:01:01 +0000 http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-191772 <strong>Transitioning to Voice 2.0: Is Microsoft Becoming the Elephant?</strong> Alec Saunders, of iotum, Talk Now  and Voice 2.0 Manifesto fame, has written one of his high level overview posts, Aikido, Retreat or War. What's Your Microsoft Strategy? Alec brings a unique perspective to the table because he has moved... Transitioning to Voice 2.0: Is Microsoft Becoming the Elephant?

Alec Saunders, of iotum, Talk Now  and Voice 2.0 Manifesto fame, has written one of his high level overview posts, Aikido, Retreat or War. What’s Your Microsoft Strategy? Alec brings a unique perspective to the table because he has moved…

]]> By: All Nortel, All the Time » Microsoft’s Telecom Plans http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-191050 All Nortel, All the Time » Microsoft’s Telecom Plans Thu, 05 Apr 2007 20:40:02 +0000 http://saunderslog.com/2007/04/05/aikido-retreat-or-war-whats-your-microsoft-strategy/#comment-191050 [...] Alec Saunders has a fascinating post looking at how Microsoft has been moving into the telecom market - PBX, VoIP, etc. - and how the software giant’s aggressive strategy could impact major players such as Nortel, Cisco and Nokia. Add to:                      This entry was posted on Thursday, April 5th, 2007 and is filed under Blogs. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site. Related Posts: [...] [...] Alec Saunders has a fascinating post looking at how Microsoft has been moving into the telecom market - PBX, VoIP, etc. - and how the software giant’s aggressive strategy could impact major players such as Nortel, Cisco and Nokia. Add to:                      This entry was posted on Thursday, April 5th, 2007 and is filed under Blogs. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site. Related Posts: [...]

]]>