why DID microsoft make .NET? like, the benefit of a VM is portability so why make a VM and then be like "... and it will only run on x86 windows computers! :3"

i guess so that they could have multiple languages all target the same common language runtime and interop easily?

@eniko compete with Java on paper and acquire research talent from Cambridge and Edinburgh CS departments. I don't think it ever started with any plausible business plan.