WASHINGTON: A federal appeals court on Thursday rejected Microsoft Corp.'s
request to re-examine part of its ruling in the landmark antitrust case against
the company and also declined to speed the case back to a lower court, a move
sought by the US government.
The decision leaves the case on schedule to have a portion reheard in US
District Court no earlier than mid-August.
Microsoft had asked the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia on
July 18 to re-hear a portion of the ruling that found the company illegally
"commingled" computer code of its Internet Explorer browser and the
Windows operating system to protect its monopoly power.
Opposing Microsoft, government prosecutors had argued that the case should be
moved quickly in the wake of a June 28 appeals court ruling that Microsoft
abused its monopoly in the market for personal computer operating systems.
The appeals court decision to reject both motions on Thursday was unanimous.
A representative of the US Justice Department was not immediately available for
comment. Microsoft said in a statement that it remained committed to moving
forward promptly in the legal process and remained open to resolving the case as
quickly as possible.
A new district court judge will re-examine whether Microsoft illegally tied
its Internet Explorer browser into the Windows operating system and will
consider what remedies should apply to prevent future violations of antitrust
law.
Microsoft executives have repeatedly said they want to move the case quickly.
They have also said they are interested in reaching a settlement with the US
government and states that have pursued the case.
However, some antitrust experts have said Microsoft's request for a
re-hearing may have been aimed at delaying the case so sanctions won't be
imposed by the courts until after Microsoft rolls out its new Windows XP
operating system, which is scheduled for release in October.
(C) Reuters Limited 2001.