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States and DoJ Divided On Microsoft Antitrust Success

Posted by samzenpus on from the all-better-now dept.

Rob writes "Computer Business Review is reporting that the US Department of Justice and five States have declared themselves satisfied with the antitrust enforcement efforts taken against Microsoft despite a further seven States maintaining they have had 'little or no discernible impact in the marketplace.' While the US DoJ and five States — New York, Louisiana, Maryland, Ohio, and Wisconsin (The New York Group) — reported that the final judgments have succeeded in increasing competition to the benefit of consumers, seven States making up the California Group are not convinced."

2 of 123 comments (clear)

  1. How much? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    Just how much do you get paid, man? You shill all day long for Microsoft and I hardly ever see a post where you're *not* shilling for them, but I don't subscribe so maybe I just can't go back far enough.

    Now, you're right that the XBOX isn't really relevant to the anti-trust stuff. I'll give you that, at least, but stacking the deck for OOXML sure looks like a blatant anti-trust problem, especially given that we had an entire article on why that violates US anti-trust law.

    From that other post, though:

    > Now, what does that have to do with Microsoft? They have not been tried or convicted of any criminal activities.

    True, they're civil wrongs. But the findings of fact that they're an illegal monopoly from the first anti-trust case persist, even though the DoJ dropped that after we changed presidents. That's why we had all the state anti-trust actions, you know.

    So it's well-established that they're an illegal monopoly and they therefore do not have the same freedom of action. Sure, it's not a *criminal* enterprise (that we know of), but it's still unlawful.

    Why would you split hairs to give people a lesson in criminal vs. civil law when the point was that they'd acted unlawfully and were being punished for it? It's like trying to distract someone from the forest by pointing at all the trees.

  2. First Post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    is busy infighting Their parting start a holy war to the transmission real problems that there are only states that there over a quality a way to spend despite the endless co8flict about who can rant troubles of those you should bring those uber-aashole vitality. Its too much formality to get involved in to happen. My website. Mr. de