Network effects are not the only reason that Microsoft has been successful. Companies have failed to compete with Microsoft for many reasons. Although the tech

Network effects are not the only reason that Microsoft has been successful. Companies have failed to compete with Microsoft for many reasons. Although the technology is often second rate management at Microsoft has been able to broker the right deals, destroy the competition or let the competition destroy themselves. Microsoft has also benefited from the fragmented market that existed for many years and a clear sales pitch to different levels in the industry from the consumer to the corporation. The great mistake that many have made is not to appeal to the corporate desktop. This requires Sales people to play golf in my view: not just writing useful software. This attempt to rattle Google is just another example of these tactics at work.