The US Justice Department has expanded its antitrust probe of Microsoft Corp to include information about Sun Microsystems Inc and its Java programming language. The request by the DOJ for information from Sun signals a shift away from the initial focus on browser software and more into the area of operating systems, where Sun’s Java technology could offer competition to the Windows environment. Sun confirmed that it has received an official request for information from the Justice Department, as well as from a number of the 14 states that are also investigating Microsoft’s business practices. It says the requests came some time ago but have only just been made public. Sun’s involvement in the case centers around the ongoing civil suit it filed against Microsoft which alleges that Redmond has violated the terms of its Java license. In the meantime, Reuters reports that the special adviser in the case, Harvard law professor Lawrence Lessig, was leaning toward recommending a ruling against the software giant, before he was temporarily removed from his position last month amid continued opposition from Microsoft on the grounds that Lessig was biased against the company. Lessig had written a letter to both sides that expressed the opinion that Microsoft had not upheld the 1995 consent decree between it and the government that prohibits the company from tying sales of one of its products to sales of another one. A hearing is set for April 21 to determine whether Lessig will be allowed reassume his role in the case.
