“Microsoft said the government’s findings ‘are rife with
internal inconsistencies’ and include ‘stunning concessions’ that
undermine the government’s claims that the company is a monopoly
engaged in anticompetitive practices.
The government, in turn, said Microsoft has ‘ignored most of the
evidence against it’ in its argument to the judge and has
‘mischaracterized much of the evidence that is not
ignored.’ “
“…Microsoft asks the court to ‘take judicial notice’ of
Dell Computer Corp.’s Aug. 9 announcement that it was
offering the Linux operating system as an option on two of
its desktop and notebook lines. Moreover, Microsoft also
pointed to Linux maker Red Hat Inc.’s initial public offering
last month, citing a Aug. 12 New York Times story that
characterized the IPO as ‘spectacular debut.’ “
“In its rebuttal, Microsoft, for instance, argues that the
government’s assertion that it’s a monopoly is ‘utterly at odds’
with belief that middleware is a potential threat to Windows.
Middleware, extensions or complements to Windows, could serve as
platforms for independent software developers, it argues.
The government, for its part, says that Microsoft advances ‘the
remarkable argument’ that ‘because Microsoft felt it necessary to
act to crush potential competitive threats, this means that
Microsoft could not be a monopolist since a monopolist would not
face competitive threats in the first place.’ “