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Microsoft Calls Out Google For Running 'Shadow Campaigns' in Europe To Influence Regulators (cnbc.com) 20

Microsoft took the unusual step on Monday of publicly criticizing longtime rival Google for running "shadow campaigns" in Europe designed to discredit the software giant with regulators. CNBC: Microsoft lawyer Rima Alaily wrote in a blog post that Google hired a firm to recruit European cloud companies to represent the search company's case. "This week an astroturf group organized by Google is launching," Microsoft lawyer Rima Alaily wrote in a blog post. "It is designed to discredit Microsoft with competition authorities, and policymakers and mislead the public. Google has gone through great lengths to obfuscate its involvement, funding, and control, most notably by recruiting a handful of European cloud providers, to serve as the public face of the new organization."

The conflict represents a fresh battle between two companies that do battle in cloud infrastructure as well as online advertising and productivity software. The latest chapter surfaces as Google faces heightened regulatory pressure in Europe and in the U.S., where it's in the midst of its second antitrust trial against the Justice Department. Alaily suggested in Monday's post that Google hired advisory firm DGA Group to set up the Open Cloud Coalition. One company that opted not to participate in the group told Microsoft that the coalition would receive financial backing from Google and criticize Microsoft's practices in Europe, Alaily wrote.

Microsoft Calls Out Google For Running 'Shadow Campaigns' in Europe To Influence Regulators

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  • I feel bad, I really do, while MS continues to crush user's faces into the dirt with Windows 11. I really feel for them!
  • As if Microsoft doesn't have an army of lawyers and lobbyists doing the exact same thing :|

  • longtime rival Google for running "shadow campaigns" in Europe designed to discredit the software giant with regulators

    If anyone knows about unfair competition, it's Google. If I was the regulators, I'd listen to them. And then I'd go after them too of course.

    • by gweihir ( 88907 )

      Indeed. Although, to be fair, Google services and products are nowhere as fucked up bad as what Microsoft offers. Well, they will eventually get there.

    • by evanh ( 627108 )

      Yeah, that's M$'s turf, it'll call out encroachment on a dime.

  • This sounds like the FUD campaigns Microsoft ran against rivals from the late 1980s on.
  • As a friend said about another organization with "Open" in its name: "The only thing 'Open' is its mouth."

  • Usual dirty tricks from Google, they are finding they can't compete on an even playing field so they have to mix up the game
  • This is Microsoft saying to European regulators, "LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME!" You'd think they'd be smarter than that, but then again, they're still foisting Windows on the world, and making it worse with each iteration.

    I mean, sure, regulators will look at Google too, but if I were Microsoft I certainly wouldn't stand on any podiums shouting about the competition being corrupt.

  • Microsoft took the unusual step on Monday of publicly criticizing longtime rival Google for running "shadow campaigns" in Europe designed to discredit the software giant with regulators .. Google has gone through great lengths to obfuscate its involvement, funding, and control, most notably by recruiting a handful of European cloud providers, to serve as the public face of the new organization.

    Back in the day Waggener Edstrom [edge-op.org] carried out precicely that function for MICROS~1.

    To: Stephanie
  • And, of course, Google or others simply telling regulators the truth, which is that MS products and services are fucked up and likely cannot be fixed, is, of course, a big no-no!

  • I have no preference and would like nothing better than to see them destroy one another.

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