Ray Ozzie (founder of Groove Networks) asks: "what is Microsoft's official position on weblogs?"
I really can't say that Microsoft has an official policy one way or another. On our intranet there are a set of guidelines. I'll try to get permission to repost those here. I'll be on a panel discussion on June 17 (Microsoft employees, if you're interested in coming, send me email).
Right now I think we're all trying to figure out what they are good for, how to avoid any bad press, and how to stay out of legal troubles. On the panel discussion is a senior lawyer, so it'll be interesting to hear what the lawyers who work for Microsoft think.
I'm hearing that there's great support from the upper levels of management. I'm hearing that Steve Ballmer regularly reads through weblogs to see what people are saying about Microsoft. The fact that Eric Rudder, a senior vice president at Microsoft, now has a weblog, shows that the highest levels of management are thinking about them.
On the other hand, anyone who works at Microsoft should know that anytime they write something down they are putting their careers at risk. This is a risky business. Anytime you communicate with other people in a way that can be brought into a courtroom, you are putting yourself and your company at risk for getting sued. At risk of losing customers. At risk of pissing people off. At risk of creating a PR nightmare.
Weblogging is like dancing in a field of land mines. I find I've had to make friends in the legal profession. Friends in the PR profession. Friends in the journalistic professions.
Will I step on a landmine I didn't see? It's very possible. I guess that's one reason I have 18 readers who come by here every day. "Will Scoble blow up?"
On the other hand, I'm happy to work for an organization that has some tolerance for making mistakes. I just hope I don't end up being one of those guys who has to explain a mistake to Bill. [The Scobleizer Weblog]
12:20:01 PM 
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