Judge delays Microsoft verdict

Just hours before he was expected to find Microsoft guilty of having violated

U.S. antitrust law, Federal Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson granted a last minute

request by Microsoft and the U.S. Justice Department to give them 10 days, or

until April 7, to work out a settlement in the case.

Negotiations between the two sides are being handled by court-appointed

mediator, Richard Posner, a federal appeals judge in Chicago who made the formal

request for a delay on behalf of the two parties. Apparently both sides are

exploring whether there is enough common ground for a settlement. The U.S.

Justice Department swiftly rejected Microsoft’s initial settlement deal, faxed

to them last week-end. But the two parties have agreed to continue negotiations.

Both sides have plenty of reason to settle. Microsoft is looking for a way to

protect itself from the 100 antitrust lawsuits that have already been filed

against the company since Jackson first ruled the company operates a monopoly.

The government, meanwhile, is keen on settling before the November elections

which could bring in a Republican Administration that will most likely not

pursue the case. And even under a Gore Administration, the legal battle with

Microsoft could drag on for 5 or more years.