Ralph Fox wrote:

You can still find microsoft.* hierarchy newsgroups on many Usenet
servers, but Microsoft abandoned those newsgroups many years ago.

Due to peering, most Usenet providers continued carrying the
microsoft.public.* newsgroups despite Microsoft shrunk away from Usenet
(because they couldn't control it nor alter the standards to their
wants). The users didn't abandon the microsoft.public.*. It was
Microsoft that fled away. Microsoft's logic back then was their last
version of Windows Server that included an NNTP server program (Windows
Server 2003?) was discontinued hence unsupported, and Microsoft used it
as an excuse to abandon Usenet. Microsoft refused to use a 3rd-party
NNTP server, even free ones (e.g., INN) than many Usenet providers use.

I do remember some self-appointed joker trying to claim Microsoft
authority tried to cancel all posts to the microsoft.public.* newsgroups
along with issuing requests to get the Usenet providers to remove the
newsgroups. I recall only 1 Usenet provider complied with the bogus
"Microsoft request". Everyone else didn't give a gnat's fart about the
imposter, nor did they care Microsoft was leaving Usenet. Usenet
doesn't require the permission of companies to have newsgroups created
that focus on a company's products. Creating official newsgroups (in
the Big-8 hierarchy) goes through a lengthy process, but deleting them
is even harder.

Alas, after Microsoft abandoned Usenet (but Usenet providers continued
to carry the newsgroups), the MVPs gradually left Usenet. The boobs
moved to the flat-filed web-based forums (Answers), so the MVPs followed
where their expertise would be seen as greater by comparison to the
forum community instead of back in Usenet. The MVPs followed the boobs
move where they were needed to provide the most help.