Microsoft controls the most popular operating system on planet earth, along with its associated APIs. If Microsoft decides that it wants to help one manufacturer more than another, the ramifications can obviously be immense.

If you're developing new graphics technology and Microsoft opts not to support your new features in their next API, the effect would be chilling on your product's competitiveness. This is something that's always in the back of the mind of a hardware developer as they decide how vocal they wish to be about Direct3D and its shortcomings.

Brian Hook