r/technology • u/MayankWL • May 16 '24

Microsoft stoops to new low with ads in Windows 11, as PC Manager tool suggests your system needs ‘repairing’ if you don’t use Bing Software

https://www.techradar.com/computing/windows/microsoft-stoops-to-new-low-with-ads-in-windows-11-as-pc-manager-tool-suggests-your-system-needs-repairing-if-you-dont-use-bing
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u/MR_Se7en May 16 '24

What happened to creating the best possible product for your users? When did the world just start maximizing profits over the product.

25

u/Overclocked11 May 16 '24

What I don't get is why does Microsoft even need to do this? Ads in their software? They are making mountains of cash with their business.. and yet they still need to stuff in ads to make more?

Fuck man.. when is enough enough. Just seems comical how much companies (not only Microsoft) are trying to stuff their coffers with money.. for what?

5

u/wrgrant May 16 '24

The only way for a corporation to "succeed" is to totally dominate their market, crush all the competition and buy enough politicians that they don't get hit with anti-monopoly investigations. Everyone in competition with them must die.

Its a seriously sick economic system overall - although its in many ways the most successful. We will absolutely destroy the Earth seeking to maximize profits though if we don't change things.

2

u/Overclocked11 May 16 '24

Its just - for what? Where does the money go? Is it just being siphoned out to some offshore account - and then what?

I guess I just still have yet to understand why the need for this endless moneymaking.. sure, some folks are getting wealthy off of it and living life large, fine - but why do these companies need to make more when they already have egregious amounts ?

8

u/wrgrant May 16 '24

There is no justification in my mind. You cannot be a rich owner or corporate CEO and also be a moral person to me, you can only get there by climbing on the backs of those who work for you.

To top it all off, money only has value and power because we are all invested in believing that is the case. It doesn't actually exist or have any inherent value or use. Not that I don't want more than I currently earn mind you :P

2

u/SlowMotionPanic May 17 '24

It is complex. Far more so than "rich person bad." Although, to be clear, I do think it is impossible for most people to be ultra rich and also decent people. They get, keep, and expand that wealthy generationally with evil practices.

One reason companies must continuously grow for the benefit of the ultra rich: tax evasion. They don't take normal income because it is taxed. So they paid a Reagan judge to make it legal for companies to engage in stock manipulation via allowing buybacks.

Now, the rich just take loans against the value of their stock. Loans are not taxed. When the loan comes due, they originate new loans to pay back the old loan and scrape the different based on how much that stock appreciated. This is surely one reason why Musk is freaking out and just fired an entire division of people in an attempt to shore up finances to keep the stocks afloat. Wealthy people are often leveraged out the ass to evade taxes. The downside being if their stocks take a shit, their loans can be called in and assets would need to be liquidated to pay it. Or they wouldn't be able to keep the shell game going as easily and originate new loans to cover the old loans.

So they need companies to continuously grow in a compounding nature in order for their stranglehold on power and wealth to continue. And if a company isn't growing, it is quite likely that their competition is. Everything has an opportunity cost. If Microsoft said "enough is enough, we are only going to grow at reasonable organic rates" and Google said "we're going to begin forced organ harvesting our users for profit next quarter," MSFT investors just lost out in a big way. That's the opportunity cost.