Gates Discloses Interest in Venture Backer

Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates disclosed that he is in a venture partnership run by his friend Ann Winblad, giving the founder of the world’s biggest maker of software an indirect interest in newer companies that someday could become competitors of Microsoft. Gates disclosed in documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission that he is a limited partner at Hummer Winblad Venture Partners. The filing gave no details about the size or nature of Gates’ investment. San Francisco-based Hummer Winblad, created in 1989, was the first venture capital provider to focus on software businesses. It has backed companies such as Net Perceptions Inc.