Microsoft vs Adobe
Microsoft Monitor in “There’s More to This Story” talk about the current conflict between Microsoft and Adobe over the inclusion of PDF functionality in Office 2007.
Microsoft’s largely single-sided story could put pressure on Adobe, by taking the case for PDF in Office 2007 to customers. Funny, Microsoft has for years ignored customer requests for PDF support in Office.
This is one of these hard ones to call as to what is fair. Adobe charge a lot for their products. Anything that makes it cheaper and easier to standardise the exchange documents is good for the end user. However, Microsoft are obviously using their market position to undermine the business strategy of a long time partner. Is this such a good thing? What in the long term is the better benefit for the end user?
Especially as is likely and as we have seen many times in the past, that Microsoft already have a plan for MS-PDF. How easy would it be to break PDF quietly from Office 2007, and make it easier to only use the Microsoft tools?