U.S. Seeks Codes in Microsoft Suit
Government prosecutors on Friday asked a federal judge to force Microsoft Corp. to hand over blueprints for its Windows software in the landmark antitrust case against the firm.
The lawyers also sought to lengthen their pretrial questioning of Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates to at least two days, saying the company has “unilaterally refused” to allow more than eight hours of questions.
They also sought to force Microsoft to make 17 employees available for questioning, instead of nine, including Gates and President Steve Ballmer, as the company proposed.
In a federal court filing, government attorneys repeatedly cited a ruling made Tuesday in which a federal magistrate in Utah ordered Microsoft to provide part of the source code for Windows 95 to a small software rival.
Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft considers the software code one of the company’s most valuable pieces of intellectual property.
In both cases, Microsoft tried to prevent recipients of the code from consulting on the design of any computer operating system software for up to 18 months, a stipulation the government believes is unreasonable. The judge in the Utah antitrust case, which largely mirrors the government’s lawsuit, had refused Microsoft’s request.
Government prosecutors are seeking blueprints to Windows 95 as well as Windows 98, the latest update to the operating system.
A Microsoft spokesman said the Utah judge’s order applied only to a portion of the Windows blueprint, while the government’s request Friday seeks the broader code. The spokesman, Jim Cullinan, said Microsoft did not make more employees available for pretrial questioning because the government did not give ample notice. The company plans to file objections to the motion, he said.
The Justice Department, 20 states and the District of Columbia are suing Microsoft under federal antitrust law, accusing the software giant of using its influence to unfairly stifle competition.
The company’s popular Windows software runs about 80% of the world’s desktop computers. The trial is set to begin Sept. 8 in U.S. District Court in Washington before Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson.
The states suing Microsoft are California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Utah, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
