You can’t hide anything, Part 1

I'm not sure how far this series will run but, like the numbers series, I thought I would start a "can't hide anything" series.  This is where information is leaked so fast it could be completely transparent.

The star of the first of the series is Microsoft. 

This is nothing to do with my previous posts on Microsoft (you know that story) but, yesterday, Kevin Johnson left the firm.  Kevin was the President of Microsoft's Platform and Services Division, and the point person for Microsoft's failed bid to buy Yahoo!

So the news comes out that he's left and Steve Ballmer, CEO, sends out an internal memo explaining what's going on at 4:30 Pacific Time (PT).  At 5:46 PT, Kara Swisher has posted the whole thing on her blog.  Here are a few highlights:

VISTA
"With SP1 and the work we’ve done with PC manufacturers and our
software ecosystem, we’ve addressed device and application
compatibility issues in Windows Vista. Now it’s time to tell our story.
In the weeks ahead, we’ll launch a campaign to address any lingering
doubts our customers may have about Windows Vista."

APPLE
"In the competition between PCs and Macs, we outsell Apple 30-to-1.
But there is no doubt that Apple is thriving. Why? Because they are
good at providing an experience that is narrow but complete."

GOOGLE
"We are going to reinvent the search category through user
experience and business model innovation. We’ll introduce new
approaches that move beyond a white page with 10 blue links to provide
customers with a customized view of their world."

YAHOO
"Yahoo was a tactic, not a strategy. We want to accelerate our share
of search queries and create a bigger pool of advertisers, and Yahoo
would have helped us get there faster. But we will get there with or
without Yahoo."

THE FUTURE
"The future is about having a platform in the cloud and delivering
applications across PCs, phones, TVs, and other devices, at work and in
the home."

As I say, you can't hide anything anymore.