When it comes to privacy I personally hold Microsoft in higher esteem than Google, and that's not because my company ('my' as in 'mine'; I don't merely work here) is also a Microsoft reseller. If you check the policies on some of the Microsoft websites (TechNet, MSDN but maybe even better: CodePlex) then I think you may end up surprised. They're not merely make (false?) promises; they even commit to some of it.
Basically; if you can catch Google of violating their policies then you got them. From my own impressions of the Microsoft policies (for what's it worth) I think you can sue the heck out of them if you catch them violating their own promises.
Even so; I think dumping MSN is one of the most stupid things they've done in quite a while. Especially if you take into consideration that they haven't really dumped it; my Windows Phone can connect to what was known as MSN pretty easily; just too bad there's hardly a usable client available for PC usage.
As for Skype; no thanks. I hate that stuff with a passion. Let's just say that I'm not quite into stuff which welcomes me into their "brave new world" with many suggestions that I should consider purchasing "Skype credits". Not to mention their (in my personal opinion): sick approach of devoting half of the profile page to try and persuade people to buy into a Skype subscription. And people at some time called MSN intrusive!
It saddens me, but this week I removed both MSN Messenger as well as Skype from my PC as well as my girlfriend's PC and right now I'm somewhat keeping an eye open for possible replacements.
To me this is just one of the many examples which proves that Microsoft really has no clue, what so ever, as to what is going on in the market today. I wouldn't be surprised one bit if many Skype users would dump it because it's now being run by Microsoft. And on the other hand we have many "Microsoft users" (meaning MSN messenger) who wouldn't even touch Skype with a pole because they simply dislike it with a passion.
That's 2 strikes in my book, but I guess some Microsoft official has a perfect explanation why this is a huge win for Microsoft. Just too bad that the people who should be using it are basically running away; but that's probably because "they don't understand it" just yet. The same reason why, according to Microsoft in the beginning, Windows 8 didn't take off.
Pardon the rant-bordering post. I sort of feel strongly about all this, especially because in my opinion they started out so good. And it only went down-hill ever since.
