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Coop's Corner: Straight talk from Chuck D Updated 6:18 PM ET May 1, 2000 by Charles Cooper, ZDNet News While Chuck D's got the word, the DOJ's got no comment -- and perhaps no clue. Count on Chuck D to tell folks the unsettling truth. Taking issue with fellow musicians Dr. Dre and Metallica, the Chuckster has come out foursquare behind Napster. What's more, the rap entrepreneur also announced on Monday a songwriting contest -- a joint event sponsored by his own Rapstation.com and Napster -- as part of his PR campaign on behalf of freely shared music. The record companies have come out foursquare against technologies that let people swap largely pirated music via the Internet. Its special ire has been reserved for Napster, a tool that lets users search for and download MP3 files. It will be interesting to watch which position his fellow musicians decide to support. Pardon me for my inborn cynicism, but I suppose a lot of the more successful musicians will opt to maintain the status quo. After all, these are good times and why risk living in Fat City for the sake of a cause? Singing about rebellion and striking a pose is one thing. But that's a world away from stepping behind a barricade and putting everything on the line. The fact is that the recording industry is making a mighty effort to stamp out a parallel music industry because it understands the revolutionary threat to the existing order posed by digital distribution. In coming months, we're likely to see a very artful interpretation of prehistoric laws to make sure that challenge goes away. Though too early to tell which side will triumph, one thing is clear: This won't be the last time you'll hear Chuck D holler, "(Microsoft) Word." I can't do any better than quote the response of reader Daniel Welch to the Supreme Court's decision to absolve an ISP from liability over the publishing of defamatory messages: "Finally, in this day and age of idiotic high-tech lawsuits, one small glimpse of sanity." Nothing like a good bloodletting in the stock market to get the talking heads to don sackcloth and ashes. But a new report by high-tech recruiter in Silicon Valley indicates that the Internet job market among business-to-business firms remains strong. Even a court-ordered breakup of Microsoft can't cook that golden goose. Have you heard about Bill Gates' $52 million investment for a chunk of the Wisconsin Central Transportation Corp? This outfit operates that state's biggest railroad. Boxcar Bill may be considering life after Microsoft, but speaking of the Case That Won't Die, I remain even more curious than ever about the thinking behind the government's dopey proposal to break up Microsoft. Wall Street, which predictably shrugged off the news, may be onto the fact that this proposed remedy won't make it to the goal line. Even if Judge Jackson accepts it -- in part or in toto -- it's useful to recall that he also happens to be the most overturned judge in his district. But do the trustbusters seriously believe the testimony of their experts who contend the Office division might become a contender to rival the Windows division? This argument strikes a familiar chord. Before the decline and fall of Lotus, there were similar rumblings in the early 1990s about how Lotus Notes might become a de facto middleware platform that would attract third-party applications support. That scenario, which had a lot more going for it than the government's current argument, went nowhere. If this remedy proposal makes its way into law, history is bound to repeat itself. Can someone explain to me what the folks in the Justice Department's PR department do to justify their paychecks? Beats me. Putting in a request on deadline to the DOJ is akin to tossing a penny into a black hole. You never see it again. In Washington today, the President announced that the U.S. military would stop intentionally degrading Global Positioning System signals for consumers. The upshot is that civilians will be able to enjoy a ten-fold increase in accuracy when using the satellite navigation system to pinpoint ground locations. The news has been making the rounds in Redmond and informed sources say Joel Klein is thinking about getting out of Washington for a while. Related Links: What the experts think Get the latest Net news Technology, Law and Politics Microsoft Windows vs. Microsoft Office? (Previous story) Dell: Antitrust laws outdated (Next story)   Archive: Tue May 2  Mon 1  Sun Apr 30  Sat 29  Fri 28  Thu 27  Wed 26

E-tailers: Make your customers happy MP3.com offers pay-for-play music Metallica to ask Napster to ban users This ATM gives cash -- and movie trailers MS: Beware of the charging bull Microsoft's Real Problem: No Innovation Another B2B exchange is born   May 1 Will e-business become just business? Microsoft Windows vs. Microsoft Office? Coop's Corner: Straight talk from Chuck D Dell: Antitrust laws outdated © 2000 ZDNet Printer-friendly format Send this story to a friend