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Wow this story is shocking. I want to point out it’s quite believable if you look at this situation historically. Microsoft was known for doing this exact same

by Top19 9y ago

Wow this story is shocking. I want to point out it’s quite believable if you look at this situation historically. Microsoft was known for doing this exact same thing. Their tactic was to wine and dine startups, give them the “big megacorp company treatment”, ask them to divulge just a little of how they were doing what they were doing. Then they would go back to Seattle, put out an identical product 6 weeks later, and dare the company to sue them. Also another tactic of theirs was to get their executives or those on their payroll onto the boards of startups, sometimes as advisors, and then feed info back to MSFT. Their behavior has changed a ton from then I want to point out, but now looks like Google has picked up where they left off...

paul7986 9y ago
Google did something similar to me as I have detailed in this thread below.... https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15422475 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15422475 It's very relevant to this story and I think it's important for it to be told to warn other inventors how Google treats the little guy/girl!
- Top19 9y ago
  Hey have read your story Paul and sorry about that. FWIW even Oracle tried to sue them, and Oracle has never been known for not going 100% ruthless or going cheap on their lawyers / law talent, and even they failed. The only one who can stop them now is the government. Democrats are already lining up against them, and in the congressional district I live in, even the very conservative Lamar Smith recently sent them an angry letter regarding various accusations. They are being hemmed in by both sides, and if politics gets better the cooperation of both parties will lead to their massacre, and if it gets worse, they’ll be the scapegoat likely and equally massacred. I hope that provides some solace. The breakup of Google and Facebook will also unleash a flood of talented engineers for places they are more needed than shitty advertising companies, maybe you can partner with one of them when the dam breaks.
justinclift 9y ago
> Their behavior has changed a ton from then ... Based on?
XenophileJKO 9y ago
If they released in 6 weeks then they had already created the product before they talked to the startup.

by Top19 9y ago

paul7986 9y ago

Google did something similar to me as I have detailed in this thread below.... https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15422475 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15422475 It's very relevant to this story and I think it's important for it to be told to warn other inventors how Google treats the little guy/girl!

Top19 9y ago
Hey have read your story Paul and sorry about that. FWIW even Oracle tried to sue them, and Oracle has never been known for not going 100% ruthless or going cheap on their lawyers / law talent, and even they failed. The only one who can stop them now is the government. Democrats are already lining up against them, and in the congressional district I live in, even the very conservative Lamar Smith recently sent them an angry letter regarding various accusations. They are being hemmed in by both sides, and if politics gets better the cooperation of both parties will lead to their massacre, and if it gets worse, they’ll be the scapegoat likely and equally massacred. I hope that provides some solace. The breakup of Google and Facebook will also unleash a flood of talented engineers for places they are more needed than shitty advertising companies, maybe you can partner with one of them when the dam breaks.

justinclift 9y ago

> Their behavior has changed a ton from then ... Based on?

XenophileJKO 9y ago

If they released in 6 weeks then they had already created the product before they talked to the startup.