McCormick stuurde ons een link naar dit artikel van C|NET waarin wordt gemeld dat Bill Gates bereid is de source code van Windows vrij te geven aan de concurrentie als schikking voor de antitrust zaak die het DoJ tegen de softwaregigant aanspande. De aanklagers vinden het wel een interessant idee omdat ze op deze manier Microsoft's marktaandeel kunnen verdunnen zonder een mogelijke breakup van het bedrijf.
Microsoft is seeking a settlement with the Justice Department and 19 states that have filed an antitrust suit against the software giant and would ''do our absolute best to achieve it,'' Gates said in an interview.Gates said he would agree to open the source code for the company's Windows operating system as part of a settlement, a move that would allow competitors to create and sell their own modified versions of Windows.
State antitrust enforcers said that Gates's offer could form the basis for further talks. They've been intrigued by the idea because it would help dilute Microsoft's market domination without breaking up the company.
''If Gates is serious, I think it could be a significant development that would merit further discussions among the parties,'' said Stephen Houck, a New York antitrust lawyer who was lead counsel for the 19 states at the Microsoft trial.
Microsoft and the U.S. government still remain far apart on terms of a possible settlement. The government is seeking to break up the software giant, and settlement talks so far have failed to produce an agreement.