Hacker News Reader

Comment by donflamenco | Hacker News Reader

A (the?) big reason Microsoft got the IBM contract was because Bill Gate's mom (Mary Gates) was on the board of United Way with the CEO of IBM at the time (John Opel.)

Bill Gate's parents are impressive on their own rights.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Maxwell_Gates "In 1980, she discussed with John Opel, a fellow committee member who was the chairman of the International Business Machines Corporation, her son's company. Mr. Opel, by some accounts, mentioned Mrs. Gates to other I.B.M. executives.

A few weeks later, I.B.M. took a chance by hiring Microsoft, then a small software firm, to develop an operating system for its first personal computer."

View on HN

IBM approached Microsoft to provide various software for their PC. Microsoft said they could provide BASIC, but not an Operating System, and helpfully directed IBM to Digital Research. Digital Research passed on the onerous terms (close to free).

IBM went back to Microsoft and said "now what?". Microsoft, fearing they would lose the BASIC deal as well, then purchased the rights to QDOS or 86-DOS (a CP/M clone) for $50,000 from Seattle Computer Products, and did the deal with IBM, agreeing to the onerous terms that Digital Research wouldn't. Which as we all know didn't actually turn out to be very onerous at all.

This is well documented in Triumph of the Nerds.

Mary Maxwell Gates may have provided an introduction, but it was the chutzpah, genius and desperation of Bill Gates that got the deal done.

Per Walter Isaacson [1], the influence of Mary Gates was more to endorse and confirm the deal, than to serve as an introduction. During a business trip, Mary Gates mentioned to John Opel that "My son is doing business with your company", but he answered that he wasn't aware of any deal, and never heard of any "Micro-soft". On her return, she joked with Bill that his deals with IBM shouldn't be that important.

Several weeks later, when deal was ready to be signed, IBM execs ran the agreement by John Opel, who then mentioned "oh, this must be Mary Gates' son. She's great. Yes, go ahead".

[1] http://smile.amazon.com/The-Innovators-Hackers-Geniuses-Revo...

Reply on news.ycombinator.com