Microsoft (MSFT) said today that it has
received a request for information from the U.S.
Department of Justice (DOJ), a sign that the
government is renewing its investigation of the
software giant for allegedly anticompetitive
practices.
Officials at Microsoft said that the company has
been notified that it will receive a civil investigative
demand or a civil subpoena for information from
the DOJ. The company has received a number of
investigative demands in the past, including one in
the summer of 1995 that was related to
Microsoft's bundling of Microsoft Network access
software in Windows 95.
The latest demand appears to be in response to
recent accusations by Netscape Communications
that Microsoft is attempting to squeeze out
competition in the Internet market through a series
of anticompetitive moves, including applying
pressure tactics to hardware original equipment
manufacturers to bundle Internet Explorer.
Microsoft officials would not comment on the
specific details of the DOJ inquiry, but said that the
company will comply with government requests for
information.
"We'll cooperate with them. This is not anything
particularly new," said Greg Shaw, a spokesman
for Microsoft. "They've asked for a lot of
information over the past few years."
--** History 101** Hiroshima 45 - Chernobyl 86 - Windows 95 ============================================= "The only problem with Microsoft is they just have no taste, they have absolutely no taste, and what that means is, I don't mean that in a small way I mean that in a big way. I have a problem with the fact that they just make really third rate products."
Steve Jobs, Triumph of the Nerds, PBS Documentary
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ tbyars@earthlink.net