Government lead attorney David Boies criticized Microsoft Corp’s tactics of taking out full-page advertisement in US Sunday papers, as he spoke to reporters on the steps of the Washington court house yesterday. The advertisement, headed The March of the Marketplace, highlighted the recent $4.2bn merger agreement between America Online Inc and Netscape Communications Corp, and AOL’s associated agreement with Sun Microsystems Inc. The copy claimed The competitive landscape of the software industry can change in an instant. Such change is good for consumers, Microsoft argued. I chuckled when I saw the ad said Boies, whenever you see a company putting out large, expensive ads in lots of newspapers saying how well other companies are doing, it’s usually because that company is a monopoly. I looked in vain for a reference to PC operating systems – that’s what this case is about. Microsoft Corp said once again it intends to file a motion to dismiss the case, prompted partly by the AOL/Netscape merger, once the government concludes its arguments. Government legislation will only slow the industry down said a Microsoft spokesperson, the government is always five steps behind.
