So, Microsoft has bought Groove Networks and hired Ray Ozzie, the founder of Groove and creator of Lotus Notes, to be their chief technical officer.
David Teather writes in the Guardian that it is part of MS plan to boost its office applications:
The acquisition is part of Microsoft's ambition to expand its Office franchise beyond Word and Excel. It has introduced online conferencing software and is entering the market for corporate instant messaging. Groove's software aims to make the virtual office a reality, with users at different locations anywhere in the world.
The Financial Times points out that Ozzie has long been a proponent of peer-to-peer style technologies, something which Gates has recognised.
[Ozzie] maintained that by letting a network of people share data directly with each other, rather than through centrally managed servers, peer-to-peer systems were better suited to connecting laptop computers, mobile devices and other gadgets...
Bill Gates... said yesterday that the next version of Windows, codenamed Longhorn, had already been meant to employ peer-to-peer technology. Buying Groove and bringing Mr Ozzie and the company's 200 employees to Microsoft would push that vision further, he said.
No word yet on his blog, which hasn't been updated for a year.
