The Microsoft Case Simplified (bullet summery)

·The Microsoft Corporation is accused of violating sections one and two of the Sherman Act. Microsoft's anticompetitive conduct is designed to eliminate consumers' choices on which operating system they use and in turn to ultimately eliminate any competition.

·Section one states that law prohibits any restraint on free trade and is subject to an enormous fine and possible jail time. Microsoft may have violated this with the free distribution of Internet Explorer. Section two of the Sherman act states that it is illegal to form a monopoly, attempt to form a monopoly or combine and conspire to form a monopoly. Microsoft may be guilty of this they put there operating system on every PC tat has their software applications in them.

·The Department of Justice claims that Microsoft is a monopoly because it is an anticompetitive firm whose business model is designed around squashing its competition. It does this by eliminating its customers' choice of Internet browser as well as operating system.

Microsoft Building

Microsoft and Flickr

English: Windows Vista logo.

Manufacturers have no alternative to Microsoft Windows. The production and distribution of another operating system is simply too costly and tedious to distribute in such a closed market. There are simply too many software applications tat must be run on Microsoft software (i.e. Microsoft Windows).

·Microsoft's anticompetitive conducts include negotiations with PC manufacturers that restrict them to only using Microsoft software. They are not even allowed to distribute, promote, or buy non-Microsoft products.

·Microsoft may have violated section two by attempting to conspire with Netscape programmers. Microsoft's plan of action was to merge with Netscape technology in order to fully supply consumers with Microsoft Internet Explorer. Microsoft may have violated section one because they illegally required Manufacturers only use Windows 95 as an operating system. They were forces to install the operating system as well...