The Anti-Trust Case Against Microsoft

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to the Department of Justice. The Department of Justice moved
quickly, with Anne K.

Bingaman, head of the Antitrust Division of the DOJ, leading the way.(Check
1) The case was finally ended on July 15, 1994, with Microsoft signing a
consent settlement.(Check 1)

The settlement focused on Microsoft’s selling practices with computer
manufacturers. Up until now, Microsoft would sell MS-DOS and Microsoft’s
other operating systems to original equipment manufacturers (OEM’s) at a
60% discount if that OEM agreed to pay a royalty to Microsoft for every
single computer that they sold (Check 2) regardless if it had a Microsoft
operating system installed on it or not. After the settlement, Microsoft
would be forced to sell their operating systems according to the number of
computers shipped with a Microsoft operating system installed, and not for
computers that ran other operating systems. (Check 2)

Another practice that the Justice Department accused Microsoft of was that
Microsoft would ...

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purchased both MS-DOS and Windows, and threatening to not sell Windows
to companies who did not also purchase DOS.

In the end, Microsoft decided to suck it up and sign the settlement
agreement. In signing the agreement, Microsoft did not actually have to
admit to any of the alleged charges, but were able to escape any type of
formal punishment such as fines and the like.

The settlement that Microsoft agreed to prohibits it, for the next six and
a half years from:

* Charging for its operating system on the basis of computer shipped
rather
than on copies of MS-DOS shipped;

* Imposing minimum quantity commitments on manufacturers;

* Signing contracts for greater than one ...

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