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Justice touts Microsoft deal

By MICHAEL KIRKLAND, UPI Legal Affairs Correspondent

WASHINGTON, Nov. 2 (UPI) -- Microsoft and the Justice Department have reached a settlement in the government's antitrust lawsuit against the software giant, the department confirmed Friday.

The Justice Department was in a full-court press Friday morning to show the deal's advantages in the face of what is expected to be withering criticism from Microsoft rivals.

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The Washington Post was reporting Friday that 17 of the 19 states and the District of Columbia, whose lawsuit was combined with the federal government's, have refused to sign on to the deal because it does not deal harshly enough with Microsoft.

Critics point out that every time any court at any level has ruled in the case, Microsoft has been found guilty of illegal conduct, even if a federal appeals court rejected a break-up of the company, as ordered by the first federal judge in the trial. The Post said Microsoft rivals were calling the reported deal a "stunning triumph" for the company.

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The Justice Department and Microsoft representatives were scheduled to appear before U.S. Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly Friday morning. Kollar-Kotelly, who took over the case after U.S. Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson was removed by the appeals court for out-of-court statements against Microsoft, had ordered both sides into mediation and gave them until Friday to come up with a deal.

In a statement, the department outlined what it felt were the key provisions of the proposed settlement, which the judge must still approve:

-- The proposed settlement "applies a broad definition of middleware products which is wide ranging and will cover all the technologies that have the potential to be middleware threats to Microsoft's operating system monopoly. It includes browser, e-mail clients, media players, instant messaging software, and future new middleware developments."

-- "Microsoft will be required to provide software developers with the interfaces used by Microsoft's middleware to interoperate with the operating system. This will allow developers to create competing products that will emulate Microsoft's integrated functions."

-- The proposed deal "also ensures that other non-Microsoft server software can interoperate with Windows on a PC the same way that Microsoft servers do. This is important," the statement said, "because it ensures that Microsoft cannot use its PC operating system monopoly to restrict competition among servers. Server support applications, like middleware, could threaten Microsoft's monopoly."

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-- "Computer manufacturers and consumers will be free to substitute competing middleware software on Microsoft's operating system."

-- "Microsoft will be prohibited from retaliating against computer manufacturers or software developers for supporting or developing certain competing software. This provision will ensure that computer manufacturers and software developers are able to take full advantage of the options granted to them under the proposed final judgment without fear of reprisal."

-- "Microsoft will be required to license its operating system to key computer manufacturers on uniform terms for five years. This will further strengthen the ban on retaliation."

-- "Microsoft will be prohibited from entering into agreements requiring the exclusive support or development of certain Microsoft software. This will allow software developers and computer manufacturers to contract with Microsoft and still support and develop rival middleware products."

The department said the proposed deal also includes provisions that will help in enforcement.

-- "Microsoft also will be required to license any intellectual property to computer manufacturers and software developers necessary for them to exercise their rights under the proposed final judgment, including for example, using the middleware protocols disclosed by Microsoft to interoperate with the operating system. This enforcement measure will ensure that intellectual property rights do not interfere with the rights and obligations under the proposed final judgment."

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-- "The proposed settlement also adds an important enforcement provision that provides for a panel of three independent, on-site, full-time computer experts to assist in enforcing the proposed Final Judgment. These experts will have full access to all of Microsoft's books, records, systems, and personnel, including source code, and will help resolve disputes about Microsoft's compliance with the disclosure provisions in the Final Judgment."

A federal appeals court upheld much of Jackson's findings against Microsoft in a June ruling, though it removed him from further consideration in the case. The appeals court sent the case back down to Kollar-Kotelly to resolve any remaining issues and to determine what penalties should be imposed against Microsoft.

Citing the bad economy in the wake of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, the judge ordered the Justice Department and Microsoft into settlement hearings.

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