Microsoft Antitrust Victory

Microsoft Antitrust Victory — On 16-Jun-95, a federal appeals court ruled that an agreement between Microsoft and the Department of Justice regarding the company’s software-licensing practices be approved. (See TidBITS-264.) In an unusual move, U.S. District Judge Stanley Sporkin – who had rejected the agreement in February – was removed from the case and the matter was assigned to another district judge who was ordered to approve the settlement. Microsoft argued that Judge Sporkin was biased against the company; apparently the appeals court agreed, saying he had overstepped his authority. This effectively ends the antitrust action against Microsoft’s software licensing policies, and Microsoft officials were pleased with the decision. However, Microsoft may not be entirely out of the antitrust shadow. The Justice Department has been requesting information from both Microsoft and its competitors regarding the upcoming Microsoft Network, and the European Commission announced last week that it’s examining whether Microsoft Network would harm competition within the European Union. [GD]