5 years ago… Microsoft denies Linux threat

03.11.98 Microsoft's UK Windows marketing manager, Nick McGrath, has denied rumours that the company is feeling threatened by up-and-coming open source software (OSS) products such as Linux and Apache.

Widespread speculation emerged on Sunday evening when Eric Raymond - a leading authority on OSS engineering - posted a leaked internal Microsoft memo from Vinod Vallopillil, a Microsoft staff engineer. In it Vallopillil confessed that OSS "poses a direct, short-term revenue and platform threat to Microsoft, particularly in the server space".

McGrath refused to comment on the internal memo but denied a key point made in it: "Microsoft doesn't see open source software as a direct threat at this moment in time," he said.

03.11.03 Five years ago the rising tide of open source was very much on the radar screen at Microsoft but not only for the obvious reasons. This day in 1998 was near the beginning of the now infamous DoJ v Microsoft proceedings and featured Bill Gates’ testimony – via video – in court.

Microsoft can say it has been doing better and better over the past five years. But it was wrong to deny Linux was a threat five years ago.