Microsoft Corp is appealing last week’s preliminary decision by a US District Court that it must stop requiring Windows licensees to also license Internet Explorer (CI No 3,311). Redmond’s lawyers contend that the Court did not have the right to impose a preliminary injunction after denying the Justice Department’s petition to hold Microsoft in contempt of court for violating a consent decree dating back to 1995. In its appeal, Microsoft is arguing that the only matter before the court was to determine whether or not it was in contempt. Once the court had denied the contempt petition, the case should have ended, Redmond says. Microsoft insists it will comply with the preliminary injunction during the appeal process. But it doesn’t expect the decision to delay shipments of Windows 98 – due during the second quarter of the year – or impact short-term profits from Windows 95. Sources at the Justice Department have indicated that it would be satisfied with an arrangement in which Microsoft would provide PC makers a quick and economical way of deleting the browser from the operating system if it has already been included. Such an arrangement would allow Microsoft to ship the bundled software, and leave the decision of whether to delete IE up to the customer. Microsoft has already said it will immediately begin offering OEMs a version of Windows 95 that allows IE to be removed with minimal effect on the remaining elements of the OS. Despite the court’s ruling, initial reactions from companies such as Dell Computer Corp, IBM Corp and Micron Electronics Inc indicate that IE will remain integral to their plans. Part of the appeal is that rival Netscape Communications Corp charges OEMs between an estimated $5-to-$10 per license for its Navigator browser. In the wake of the ruling, though, Netscape has said it will become more aggressive in marketing and pricing its browser to regain market share from Microsoft.
