Thu, 08 Apr 2004

Making customers miserable the Microsoft way

It's not just the Microsoft way, really... this has serious echos of The Age of Access, the only bit of writing or thought by Jeremy Rifkin that I've ever come close to agreeing with. Normally, Rifkin's off the deep end, but in this book, highlighting the trend towards "leasing, not buying" and "renting, not owning", he was a bit ahead of the curve.

Corporations are getting rid of real property (factories, warehouses, inventories) and employees in favor of leases, service contracts, JIT (just-in-time) production, outsourcing, offshoring and temps.

Millions of us no longer own our cars, we lease autos with service contracts and two-year upgrade options. We renting or leasing everything, as opposed to buying it.

Very scary book, very scary trend.

ITM Associates CEO Ian Altman writes that Microsoft's Software Assurance program is putting a squeeze on customers.

(link) [CNET News.com]

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