The Justice Department will now ask the court to examine the developments in the software and operating systems industry since the conclusion of the original trial. In particular, it is concerned about the impending October released of Microsoft’s new Windows XP operating system, which it feels may further extend Microsoft’s monopoly position.
An original US Court order required Microsoft to split into two separate companies, one for its Windows operating system and one for all of its other business functions. It followed on from US government’s concerns over Microsoft’s integration of the Internet Explorer browser with the Windows 95 and 98 systems.
That order was overturned however by the US Court of Appeal, but only because the original trial judge, Thomas Penfield Jackson, was held to have acted improperly in dealings with the media which suggested a bias against Microsoft. The Appeal Court maintained that Microsoft had acted in breach of antitrust laws.
The case is currently in the process of being sent down to the lower courts in the US for an alternative ruling on the penalties to be enforced against Microsoft for its antitrust breach. Just because the US government has stated that it does not wish to pursue a break up order against Microsoft, that does not necessarily mean that the lower courts will not continue to pursue this course of action as a possible remedy against the company.
Analysts have speculated that the latest US Justice Department policy may form part of a potential deal with Microsoft involving the placing of restrictions on the new Windows XP operating system.
The new judge appointed to the case, Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, has a reputation within the US judicial system for pushing for settlements, and she has requested that all parties in the case present any outstanding issues to her by 14th September.