Flickr fans band together to fend off Microsoft

By Stephen Shankland on 06 February 2008

This "Blue-Pink Screen of Death" image protests Microsoft's attempted acquisition of Yahoo, which operates Flickr. (Credit: Flickr user michaeluyttersp)

This is what happens when Microsoft tries to take over not just a company but also a community: a number of Flickr users have launched a group opposing the attempted acquisition.

The Microsoft: Keep Your Evil Grubby Hands Off Our Flickr group has 1,804 members and counting. The photo-sharing site has no shortage of opinionated members, and who knows how many shares they'll be able to vote in a proxy fight, but it is an interesting development.

"I'm not a Microsoft hater," said Flickr user Christopher Bosum. "I just don't like the fact that there might be just another Internet monopolist."

Several of the photos in the pool are amusing, but the Blue-Pink Screen of Death that merges Flickr's colour scheme with Microsoft's notorious error fatal-crash message is particularly entertaining.

Microsoft made an unsolicited US$44.6 billion offer for Yahoo last week. Yahoo has said its board is studying the offer.

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