Microsoft threaten to dump the Macintosh version of Office 10 years ago during talks with Apple because the move would “ do a great deal of hurt ” to its contender , harmonise to a memorandum made public in arecently - settled antimonopoly case .
The 1997 memo from Ben Waldman , at the time the head of Microsoft ’s Macintosh development group , to then - CEO Bill Gates , urged Mac Office 97 ’s release . The cortege , which in June 1997 had not yet reached beta , was finally released as Office 98 in March 1998 .
But Waldman sympathise that the next Mac Office was a stick that could be used against Apple . “ The terror to call off Mac Office 97 is certainly the strongest bargaining point we have , as doing so will do a great trade of harm to Apple immediately . I also think that Apple is taking this threat somewhat seriously , ” Waldman articulate in his atomic number 99 - mail to Gates .
Less than six weeks after Waldman ’s eastward - mail service , Microsoft and Apple announced a pot under which the former purchase $ 150 million of Apple stock . As part of the accord , Microsoft promised to release the next version of Office and was set aside to bundle Internet Explorer with the Mac O . The two companies also agreed to a letters patent cross - licensing stack . The announced flock was the centerpiece of then - interim CEO Steve Jobs ’ keynote at the 1997 Macworld Expo in Boston .
At the time , Apple was struggling . occupation had return to the company only calendar month before , and share Mary Leontyne Price were at all - time low gear . The Microsoft - Apple agreement was see by many as a bond - out of Apple by its farsighted - time challenger .
afterwards , the U.S. Department of Justice included the bundling of Internet Explorer among the charges it brought against Microsoft in its antimonopoly case . “ Microsoft , by threatening to cease development of its Office for Macintosh productivity suite , coerced Apple into have cyberspace Explorer the default internet browser on all Macintosh operating system and to disadvantage competing browsers , ” the federal means charged in 1998 .
Waldman also write in the memoranda — which was reveal in the recently - patch up Iowa antitrust case against Microsoft — that observe Mac Office live was a good estimate because the suite ’s users could be used as guinea pigs to test new feature of speech .
“ Because Mac Office is so much less vital to our business than Windows , we have the flexibility to essay out new thing in the product before we try them on Windows , ” wrote Waldman . “ I ’ve personally also found the Mac marketplace interesting because I ’ve seen so many trends appear there first and eventually become authoritative on Windows . ”
Waldman quote examples ranging from concentrated disk and retentiveness usage to substance abuser worry over bloat in the suite .
The e - mailed memorandum isavailable online as a PDF .
