IDC Hits Out as Microsoft Claims Victory in OS War

Microsoft has come under fire from research firm IDC for trying to bend the truth about the market position of its server Windows NT OS after publishing a release containing an ?unauthorised? quote from private research compiled by US analysts.

Dan Kusneizky, director of client/server research at IDC, complained that Microsoft lifted the quote from research about vendors? shipments of operating systems and posted it on its Web site, implying that it was winning the OS war.

?Microsoft published a press release comparing the shipments of Windows NT Server to one of Novell?s Netware products and then pointed out that its product was the fastest growing. IDC required that Microsoft retract the quote,? he said.

He added: ?This did not stop some publications from publishing the original press quote. Furthermore, Microsoft still had the original press release on Web sites for several days afterwards. It claimed it was a simple mistake.?

Kusnetzky said despite the fact that estimated shipment 1996 figures show Windows NT was the fastest growing OS, ?none of the other vendors is dying, all of them are growing well?.

Microsoft was not available for comment.