The Channel Wire

May 19, 2008

Steve Ballmer, in his eight-plus years as CEO Of Microsoft, has fielded some pointed questions from the audiences who've attended his speeches. But until Monday, Ballmer had never found himself taking cover from actual projectiles hurled in his direction by audience members.

As Ballmer was giving a speech to students at Budapest University in Hungary, a man in the audience stood up and began shouting that Microsoft had stolen money from the Hungarian taxpayers.

"Give that money back, right now!" the man shouted as he began throwing eggs at Ballmer, who took shelter behind the podium.

According to Gizmodo, the man's anger stems from the discounts Microsoft offers in its software contracts with the Hungarian government, which some feel restrict the growth of open source software in that country.

The oddest thing about the incident was that no security guards or police intervened. Instead, audience members simply stood up to allow the man to leave his seat, and watched in silence as he headed for the exit.

After a few moments, Ballmer regained his composure and resumed his speech. "It was a friendly disruption," Ballmer said with a wry smile, causing the audience to erupt in laughter.

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