Gates Insisted on Intuit Action, Court Told

Microsoft Corp. chief Bill Gates said in 1997 that Intuit Inc. had to agree to use his company’s Internet browser if it wanted favorable placement in the Windows operating system, an executive with the world’s biggest software company said Monday at Microsoft’s antitrust trial.

That goes to the heart of the government’s allegation that Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft used unfair tactics to compete against Netscape Communications Corp. in a battle for share of the Web browser market.

William Poole, senior director of business development for Windows, said he was able to achieve Gates’ longtime goal of getting Intuit to make use of Microsoft’s Internet Explorer browser in its popular Quicken money management software and other products. Mountain View, Calif.-based Intuit dropped Netscape’s browser in the 1997 deal.

In return, Microsoft made a link to Intuit’s Web site available through its “channel bar,” an oblong box that appeared on the Windows 98 screen, or Active Desktop, as Microsoft calls it. The box is subdivided into bars, and clicking on the “business” channel brought up a list of links, including that for Intuit.

Intuit President William Harris testified earlier that “placement on Microsoft’s Active Desktop was believed by Intuit at the time [of the negotiation] to be critical to the success of its Web sites.”

Harris testified that Microsoft’s Poole said that Gates himself was inflexible on giving Intuit that access unless Intuit agreed to drop Netscape Navigator for Microsoft’s Explorer software.

Under cross-examination, Poole conceded that Harris’ testimony was correct.

Gates “didn’t mandate details,” said Poole, who added that Gates “sent a high-level message . . . that platinum-level partners promote Microsoft Internet Explorer preferentially to Netscape Navigator and other browsers.” Intuit was a “platinum-level” partner, meaning it had a closer tie to Microsoft than “gold” partners.