Microsoft changing to comply with feds’ proposal

D. Ian Hopper

Monday, Aug. 5, 2002 | 9:55 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- Microsoft Corp. is disclosing more technical information about its Windows operating system products in order to comply with a federal antitrust settlement that has yet to be approved by a judge, the company announced today.

"Microsoft is obligated as a company to continue to move forward to meet our obligations under the agreement, even as we are waiting for a final decision," Microsoft general counsel Brad Smith said.

The technical information will help software makers write programs that work as well with Windows as Microsoft's own products do.

Some of the technical data will be released online this month for free, while other information -- data designed for large "server" computers that run networks -- will require a licensing fee.

The disclosures came along with other previously scheduled moves to comply with the settlement. Microsoft will finish work on a new update to Windows this month which will allow computer users to hide some functions of Windows, like the media player, Web browser or mail program.

That concession was made to calm federal concerns that Microsoft's overwhelming market share in the personal computer operating system market allows it to promote its own software more heavily, giving it an unfair advantage over competing software makers like RealNetworks and America Online.

Some critics, such as RealNetworks, AOL and the nine state attorneys general who are still suing Microsoft, say that provision and other portions of the federal deal don't go far enough to keep Microsoft from dominating the industry.

The states want far stricter penalties, including some that would require broader technical disclosures, put Microsoft's Internet Explorer Web browser into the public domain and force Microsoft to let companies translate its Office productivity software to use on other operating systems.

U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, the same judge who will decide whether to approve the federal settlement, also has to decide whether to grant the states any or all of their requests. She concluded public hearings on the matter earlier this year, and is expected to make her decision in both cases within the next several months.

The original judge in the antitrust case, Thomas Penfield Jackson, ordered Microsoft broken into two companies as punishment for hurting consumer choice and breaking antitrust law. An appeals court upheld many of the violations but reversed the breakup order and appointed Kollar-Kotelly to determine a new punishment.

Microsoft also said today the new Windows license contracts with computer makers go into effect this month. Microsoft had been accused of using its licensing provisions to reward "good partners," while punishing those that did not accede to Microsoft's wishes.

The federal settlement calls for uniform contract licenses for all major computer manufacturers. Some computer makers had complained about the uniform deals when they first went into effect last year, saying they were more restrictive than their previous agreements. The new licenses reflect the computer makers' concerns, Microsoft said.

States that rejected the government's settlement with Microsoft last fall and are pressing for tougher penalties are Iowa, Utah, Massachusetts, Connecticut, California, Kansas, Florida, Minnesota and West Virginia, along with the District of Columbia.