[ale] M$ vs Netscape news
Marc A. Torres
marct at lowbyte.com
Wed Oct 1 22:35:00 EDT 1997
Microsoft disses Netscape
But Netscape has the last laugh as Mozilla stomps on
pranksters' giant 'e'
October 1, 1997: 6:31 p.m. ET
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (Reuter) - A party for 1,000 people
Tuesday night apparently wasn't enough for some Microsoft
Corp. employees. They had to top off the night with a prank on
Internet software rival Netscape Communications Corp.
Netscape employees found a gigantic blue stage prop in the
shape of an "e" in front of their company's front door
Wednesday morning.
The night before, the same 10-by-12-foot stage prop --
which represents the logo for Microsoft's Internet Explorer, or
IE, browser -- was spotted at a Microsoft bash in San
Francisco. Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates and about 1,000
industry executives were celebrating the launch of the newest
version of Internet Explorer.
A group of people were seen dropping off the "e" in front of
Netscape's headquarters in Mountain View, Calif., about 1:30
a.m. Wednesday, said Netscape spokeswoman Chris Holten. A
card attached to the prop read, "From the IE team," she said.
"It seems awfully immature to resort to fraternity tactics to
draw attention," Holten said. "We're winning the battle. It's
something you'd expect from a startup, not the largest
software company in the world."
A Microsoft spokeswoman declined to comment.
Netscape and Microsoft have been battling to dominate the
market for Internet browsers for the past two years. By most
industry estimates, Netscape has about three-quarters of the
market with its Navigator browser, but Microsoft is rapidly
gaining with each new release of Internet Explorer.
Netscape had the last laugh in the prank, though. Company
employees put their 12-foot mascot -- a green Godzilla-like
foam creature dubbed "Mozilla" -- on top of the "e".
Mozilla held a placard that read, "Netscape 72, Microsoft
18," referring to recent market share data.
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