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[_] Microsoft Advertising Services Architecture patent application

Tim Beadle tim.beadle at gmail.com
Tue Jul 17 09:46:22 BST 2007 

"The kernel meets The Colonel in a just-published Microsoft patent
application for an Advertising Services Architecture, which delivers
targeted advertising as 'part of the OS.' Microsoft, who once teamed
with law enforcement to protect consumers from unwanted advertising,
goes on to boast that the invention can 'take steps to verify ad
consumption,' be used to block ads from competitors, and even sneak a
peek at 'user document files, user e-mail files, user music files,
downloaded podcasts, computer settings, [and] computer status
messages' to deliver more tightly targeted ads."
http://slashdot.org/articles/07/07/14/043200.shtml