Microsoft officials meet with Nader cronies

Representatives of Microsoft Corporation met with consumer advocateRalph Nader's group Thursday to discuss next week's conference about "Microsoft's global strategy," which Nader has organized. The representatives will determine whether Microsoft officials need to attendthe conference. Nader had invited Microsoft CEO Bill Gates to attend, but he declined. The conference is intended to highlight Microsoft's business and trade practices, which have come under attack lately by various state and country governments.

Microsoft will not comment about the meeting, though Nader's group wasunsurprisingly vocal about it.

"Bill [Gates] won't do it, but it's plausible to us that Microsoft should be represented at the conference," said James Love, director of Nader'sConsumer Project on Technology group. "But either way, we will go ahead with the conference. If they don't send anybody, they're the topic and they're not presenting their viewpoint. I know the press is going to be there, and with the others who will be there, if Microsoft doesn't attend,it just build into a[n anti-Microsoft] crescendo.