The Case Against the Case Against Microsoft
| Author | John Hogan |
| Position | Senior Sophister Law Student, Trinity College, Dublin |
| Pages | 3-12 |
THE
CASE
AGAINST
THE
CASE AGAINST
MICROSOFT
JOHN
HOGAN*
Introduction
The
Microsoft
antitrust litigation
arose
out
of
Microsoft's
response
to
the
threat
presented
by
the
Navigator-Java
platform.'
The
combination
of
the
Navigator browser
and
the
Java programming
language
was
central
to
the
'thin
client'
initiative:
the
'client'
(computer)
would
feature only
basic
central
processing
components,
key
peripherals,
an
'Operating
System'
(OS)
and
a
browser;
data
would
be
stored
and
processed
at
server-level,
to
be
retrieved
by
the
client
as
needed.
2
'Application
Programming
Interfaces'
(APIs)
would
no
longer
be
OS-specific
but
would
instead
be
exposed
by
'middleware'
running
on
top
of
the
OS:
this
cross-platform
compatibility
would
erode
the
"applications
barrier
to
entry
' 3
and
commodify
the
underlying
OS.
4
Senior Sophister
Law
Student,
Trinity
College,
Dublin.
United
States
v.
Microsoft
Corporation,
Findings
of
Fact,
84
F
Supp
2d
9
(Dist
DC,
1999)
10
Feburary
2001);
Conclusions
of
Law,
87
F
Supp
2d
30
(Dist
DC, 2000)
trial/col/default.asp> (visited
10
February 2001);
Final
Judgment,
97
F
Supp
2d
59
(Dist
DC,
2000)
(visited
10
February
2001);
Microsoft's
Appellate
Brief
appeals/default.
asp>
(last
visited
10
February
2001).
2
Findings
of
Fact,
loc.cit.,
at
para.
24.
3
As
the
number
of
users
of
a
particular
OS
increases,
software developers
face increased
incentives
(in
the
form
of
larger
markets)
to
write
applications
for
that
OS.
The
increased
number
and
variety
of
applications
available
to
users
of
the
OS
work
to
make the
OS
more
attractive,
enticing
further
users.
However, "[what]
for
Microsoft
is
a
positive
feedback
loop
is
for
would-be
competitors
a
vicious
cycle"
-
entrants
face
a
"chicken-and-egg"
problem.
Ibid.,
at
para.
40,
30.
4
Ibid.,
at
para. 29, 32,
73-76.
The
exponential
growth
of
the
Internet
represents
an
inflection
point....
[It]
has
fuelled
the
growth
of
server-based
computing,
middleware,
and
open-source
software
development.
Working
together,
these
nascent
paradigms
could
oust
the
PC
operating
system
from its position
as
the
primary platform
for
applications development
and the
main interface
between
users
and
their
computer.
Ibid.,
at
para.
60.
Note,
however,
that
Judge Jackson
identified
"significant
shortcomings"
with
the
thin client
model:
©
2001
John
Hogan
and
Dublin
University
Law
Society
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