Reuters brengt ons via dit artikel op de hoogte van het verloop van Microsoft's nog steeds lopende anti-trust zaak, het welbekende verhaal over het inbakken van Internet Explorer in Windows. Microsoft heeft nu echter een nieuwe wending aan het geheel gegeven, door in recente documenten de rechter te beschuldigen van partijdigheid. Onder meer wegens rechter Jackson's vergelijking van Microsoft met 'onderwereld moordenaars' eist Microsoft dat er een vervanger komt:
Microsoft Corp. filed final papers in its antitrust case appeal, saying its behavior had been lawful, the trial court judge biased and his order to split the company in two unjustified.
The company took particular offense at Jackson's comparison of Microsoft with gangland killers, according to a new book about the Microsoft case by an author who spent time with the judge during and after the trial. In a 75-page reply to a government filing earlier this month, the Redmond, Wash.-based software giant said it detected several concessions by the government that much of Microsoft's behavior was lawful.[break]De slopende zaak zal nu verder gaan met pleidooien met beide partijen. De Amerikaanse overheid is in ieder geval van plan de zaak volhardend door te zetten, desnoods totaan het hooggerechtshof. Toch is een definitief vonnis over het wel of niet opsplitsen van Microsoft nog lang niet zeker, en wachten we dus weer met spanning op volgende berichten:[/break]Oral arguments are scheduled for Feb. 26-27. How forcefully the new Republican administration of President George W. Bush will pursue the Microsoft case is still unclear. Attorney General-designate John Ashcroft told nomination hearings this month he would look carefully at the case and rely on the expertise of the Justice Department.In any case, the states have said they plan to vigorously pursue the case all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary.