lexipixel - 3:44 pm on Nov 21, 2008 (gmt 0)

"a progressive consumption-based tax system" So each time I buy a soda I have to bring my 1040 with me? -walkman

I don' think we'll be rewriting the U.S. tax code here, and the turn in the topic takes away from the OP report, which should be more interesting to webmasters, Adwords and Adsense participants, and every-day web surfers who use FireFox, DMOZ and other Mozilla tools and services.

$75 million in revenue in 2007, the "vast majority" of it from a search partnership with Google

I am wondering if the FireFox browser sets a cookie or otherwise provides tracking from a Mozilla browser? I would assume it has to for "ad-revenue sharing [with Mozilla foundation]". $75M is a lot of clicks...

If so, what other possible data may Google collect from use of the FireFox browser, the DMOZ project, and other Mozilla based tools and services

Is there any news anywhere of "Mozilla earns $75million as an advertising partner for 2007"?

While anti-trust laws can openly scrutinize above board deals and possible anti-competitive, non-consumer friendly dealings of public companies, "backroom deals" are usually undertaken to gain some sort of unfair advantage...

Everyone cried foul when MS sought to integrate MS-IE into the OS in a way that excluded other browsers, as it made it difficult for anyone to choose any other browser. The effect was obvious: it gave MS a virtual monopoly on internet access from any MS/OS based PC, which at the time was probably +96% of the market.

If this story is true, than it appears "Mozilla" is bought and paid for by Google, and has been for some time, although not openly.

My questions would be:

1. Did Mozilla foundation make data from DMOZ more readily available to Google (than others including SE's).

2. Did Mozilla give Google preference in it's FireFox browser for monetary gain? (The answer appears to be "Yes", as Google is the default search engine from the browser's toolbar).

3. Did Google influence the development of any of the other Mozilla based tools in a way that either gave Google preference, or diminished any other SE's ability to integrate with Mozilla software or service on a "level playing field"?

4. Does Mozilla cooperate with Google in any way to provide user data, (from FireFox, DMOZ or any other Mozilla tools or services) ?

..and for the record, I'm for a flat tax -- earn $1.00, pay $0.15, anyone below the Federal Poverty Level pays $0.00 --- that should be enough for health care, highways, schools, etc.