BUSINESSWEEK ONLINE : OCTOBER 30, 2000 ISSUE
COVER STORY Microsoft's Internet Adventure OCTOBER, 1997 Microsoft's Internet Explorer 4.0 browser bests the competition technically. It supports the XML standard that makes it easier for data from one Web site to be displayed on another. DECEMBER, 1997 Microsoft buys Hotmail, the leading free e-mail site. This is its first foray into the new world of programs that operate on Web sites--an alternative to traditional Windows software. MAY, 1998 The federal government and 20 states sue Microsoft, alleging the company violated antitrust laws by taking unfair advantage of its Windows monopoly to gain share in the browser market. MARCH, 1999 Former exec Brad Silverberg opts not to return to run the Web businesses. He frets about doing ''unnatural and losing things to protect Windows.'' MAY, 1999 Microsoft's MSN online service focuses on new services for Web surfers' daily lives--storing personal information, keeping track of their calendars, and offering chats with friends via instant messaging. AUGUST, 1999 Group Vice-President Paul Maritz presses top brass to accept that software will be a service over the Net rather than a package bought in a store. SEPTEMBER, 1999 Then-President Steve Ballmer tells Microsoft's employees at Seattle's Kingdome that Windows is no longer the be-all and end-all. The new ''it'' at Microsoft is software delivered as a service. OCTOBER, 1999 Passport, Microsoft's first Internet service, launches. It's a Web site that stores consumers' vital shopping data so they don't have to type info in each time they shop at different sites. JANUARY, 2000 Bill Gates turns over CEO duties to Ballmer and becomes chief software architect. Gates's new role is to oversee development of Internet services JUNE, 2000 Judge Thomas Jackson rules that Microsoft should be broken in two. Two weeks later, Microsoft rolls out its .Net strategy. It's designed to help software programmers create links between Web sites to make the Web easier to use. SEPTEMBER, 2000 Maritz resigns, citing poor health. Microsoft is left without its leading .Net advocate. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ BACK TO TOP					RELATED ITEMS Microsoft's Big Bet COVER IMAGE: Microsoft's Big Bet TABLE: Microsoft's Internet Adventure TABLE: Honeywell Gets Caught Up in Microsoft's .Net TABLE: The Windows Defenders and the .Net Advocates Bill and Steve on Threats and Strategies INTERACT E-Mail to Business Week Online

Copyright 2000-2008, by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved. Terms of Use   Privacy Notice