On his , Reuven Cohen, founder and chief technologist for Toronto-based cloud-computing startup Enomaly, said Microsoft was among the first companies to review the manifesto, and he was surprised that Microsoft Manager Steven Martin in a blog post that appeared early Thursday morning.

"Let me say, we've been in active discussions with Microsoft about the open cloud manifesto, which has literally come together in the last couple weeks," he wrote. "It is unfortunate they feel this way. ...Their 2:28 a.m. pre-announcement of the manifesto was a complete surprise given our conversations."

Moreover, Cohen challenged Microsoft's contention that the manifesto does not provide for an open forum in which ideas about revisions can be discussed. "If Microsoft is truly committed to an open cloud ecosystem, this document provides a perfect opportunity to publicly state it," he wrote.

Cohen did not name the other companies involved with the manifesto, saying only that "several of the largest technology companies and organizations" are among its co-writers.

However, a document available on IBM's Web site also refers to a manifesto on cloud computing -- this one called an about the "possibilities (and risks) of cloud computing" -- hinting that IBM may be one of the large technology companies to which Cohen refers in his post.