"If neither corporations nor VCs embrace [edge] platforms, there could be a continued malaise in edge-application funding. If that happens, it might take Microsoft to push venture capitalists back into the fray -- a twist, since for years VCs avoided funding application companies, primarily out of fear of competing against Microsoft. But the company has been aggressively courting VCs for its .Net Web-services strategy, an offering that basically promises anytime/anywhere software from the Internet."