The media and advertising industry argued that the levy would stunt Greece's burgeoning Internet economy and steered advertisers to offshore competitors, like Google and Yahoo.
And hanging over every decision is the knowledge that Microsoft's last move to extend its Windows power to the Internet, in 1995, steered the company straight into a landmark antitrust lawsuit by the government.
Although many older executives have grasped the power of the Internet age, and steered their companies to exploit it, most of them speak geek as a second language, rather than as the native tongue of one who has learnt it when young.
Anyone who really believes that the simple act of discussing this on the internet, has not steered electronic ears in your direction.... is sound asleep and I understand that.
Unlike phone service providers, which are prevented under E.U. law from filtering Internet data except for purposes of network management, the makers of mobile device operating systems are allowed to effectively steer Internet traffic by giving priority to their own Web sites, applications and online businesses.
Responding to complaints by Google that it would use the search box in its new version of Internet Explorer to steer users toward the MSN search engine, Microsoft made it fairly easy for consumers to choose which search engine to use with the feature.
"Meg" steered company through Internet boom, then bust, by sticking with loyal trading communities and original goal: "create an environment in which ordinary people could be successful".
Ms. Bartz also steered Autodesk in the Internet boom, when many engineers left for dot-com start-ups, and was credited with holding the company together.
In addition to the possibilities for blending the businesses, Burkle steered the company into related Internet investments, including $10 million in Alliance Entertainment, a video and music distributor Burkle already chairs.
Microsoft also wrote contracts that required Internet service providers to steer customers to Microsoft's browser in exchange for favored access to Windows users.
