Quote:
Originally Posted by Cinisajoy
And don't most calculators do the exact same thing?
That is perform mathematical functions. Though some have more functions than others.
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You could make virtually the same statement about browsers.
It's a combination of eschwartz's & knc1's answers: the inability to uninstall IE (core operating system operation required it) and no significant commercial competitors for basic apps (calculator, notepad, etc.).
And even if there were a commercial competitor for the basic apps, they would have to decide that it's in their best interest to throw large amounts of money at a lawsuit which would they would be unlikely to win and gain little financial benefit from even if they did.
Even though Apple has been far worse in recent times than Microsoft (or Amazon) when it comes to harsh business practices against competitors, Microsoft has definitely walked a fine line in the past.
Remember when their attempted acquisition of Intuit fell through in 1994? Microsoft's response; put their own Money program (competitor to Intuit's Quicken) up for free download on their web site. And canceling the deal wasn't even Intuit's decision; it was blocked by a DoJ lawsuit. Not that it mattered; Quicken (which cost) still squashed Money (which was free, at least for a time) in market share.