12:16 PM ET 10/07/98
U.S. may seek more remedies against Microsoft
By David Lawsky
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The federal government said Wednesday
that if it wins a major antitrust trial proving that Microsoft
Corp. abused monopoly power, it may seek additional remedies
against the giant software company.
In a filing eight days before the trial is set to begin, the
Justice Department and 20 states said some relief would be
needed immediately if they win the case. The government laid out
those sanctions in May, when it filed suit against Microsoft.
The department also said for the first time that it might
widen the remedies it wants, dropping the comments into routine
papers that are filed by both sides shortly before a trial
begins.
Some critics have said that a government win in the case
would have little effect on Microsoft, which would find the
proposed sanctions as obsolete as yesterday's software.
``Depending on the nature and scope of the violations
determined by the court at trial, plaintiffs will seek such
additional permanent relief as is necessary to restore
competitive conditions and to prevent Microsoft from committing
similar violations in the future,'' the government said in its
pretrial statement.
``To that end, plaintiffs may request that the court conduct
additional proceedings for the purpose of hearing evidence
concerning such additional relief,'' it said.
A trial is set to start Oct. 15 on the government's
allegations that Microsoft illegally preserved and tried to
extend dominance in its operating system software for personal
computers.
The charges focus largely on Microsoft's tactics in
competing against Netscape Communications Corp. in the market
for browsers to navigate the World Wide Web.
During that battle, Microsoft began giving its browser away.
Microsoft says it has now integrated the browser functions into
its Windows 98 operating system so that the browser cannot be
separated out as a different product.
As a result, Netscape says its money-making business no
longer depends on the browser, which it also gives away for
free.
Nonetheless, the years-old battle that in some respects is
essentially over will be the subject of the trial.
The government has already moved to introduce other examples
of Microsoft's conduct to help prove its case. Microsoft has
objected, arguing it would need substantially more time to
prepare if new issues are raised.
^REUTERS@
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