"I have no knowledge of that," Kempin said.
is he a liar?
regards
---Zacks Newsbytes <prnews@zacks.com> wrote:
>
> WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1999 FEB 26 (NB) -- By Rajiv
> Chandrasekaran, Special to Newsbytes. Microsoft Corp. [NASDAQ:MSFT]
> representatives repeatedly told personal computer maker Gateway 2000
> Inc. [NYSE:GWY] that its decision to distribute non-Microsoft
> Internet software created a "serious" issue that could "affect our
> working relationship," Gateway told the Justice Department in a 1997
> document that was introduced yesterday at the Microsoft antitrust
> trial.
>
> The document is the first evidence presented by the government
> suggesting that Microsoft directly strong-armed a computer maker to
> stop it from offering Internet browsers made by Netscape
> Communications Corp. [NASDAQ:NSCP].
>
> Until yesterday, government attorneys had only argued that the
> software giant employed indirect tactics, such as requiring that
> Microsoft's browser be highlighted in certain ways or limiting the
> promotion of Netscape's product during a computer's process.
>
> Confronted on the witness stand with the document yesterday, Joachim
> Kempin, Microsoft's senior vice president in charge of sales to
> computer makers, said he was "at a loss" to explain Gateway's
> statements. Microsoft has long maintained that it has done nothing to
> prevent PC makers from installing rival browsers.
>
> Before government attorney David Boies could pose a follow-up
> question, US District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson, who appeared
> intrigued with the document, interjected his own series of questions.
>
> "Are you saying that never happened?" Jackson asked Kempin. "No
> Microsoft representative to your knowledge ever said such a thing to
> Gateway?"
>
> "I have no knowledge of that," Kempin said. "I believe if that had
> happened, I would have gotten a phone call" from Gateway.
>
> The document, which was written by Gateway in response to a subpoena
> from the Justice Department, also stated that Microsoft
> representatives "strenuously objected" when Gateway decided to
> distribute Netscape's browser to its employees for internal use.
>
> Despite Microsoft's complaints, Gateway elected to continue internal
> use of the Netscape browser, a point that Microsoft attorneys contend
> disproves the government claim that Microsoft has great power with
> its customers. Gateway also did not stop installing the Netscape
> product on machines it sold, according to documents released earlier
> in the trial.
>
> An economist hired by the government asserted last month that Gateway
> pays higher prices to license copies of Windows than Compaq Computer
> Corp. [NYSE:CPQ] and Dell Computer Corp. [NASDAQ:DELL], two firms
> that have not aggressively promoted the Netscape browser. Microsoft
> maintains that the lower prices for Dell and Compaq, the two largest
> PC makers, are the result of volume discounts and are unrelated to
> browser promotion.
>
> With Jackson insistent that the trial wrap up today with the
> questioning of Microsoft's final witness, Boies was forced to rush
> through his interrogation of Kempin, often posing just a few
> questions on a topic before moving onto a different subject.
>
> Among the documents presented by Boies was an excerpt of Kempin's
> pretrial deposition, which Boies apparently felt lent support to the
> government's contention that Microsoft has a monopoly with Windows.
> Kempin testified that he set the price for Windows without giving
> consideration to other operating systems on the market, which he
> called "inferior type products."
>
> Earlier in the day, Jackson challenged Kempin's assertion that
> consumers seek out Internet browsers they like -- often getting a
> copy over the Internet -- instead of automatically using Microsoft's.
>
> "You seemed very reluctant to give us any statistic a few minutes
> ago," Jackson said, referring to a statement from Kempin that he
> could not specify how many browsers were distributed through PC makers
> last year. "Now you're telling me you disagree with this information.
> Based on what? Word of mouth?"
>
> Kempin then said his analysis was "totally anecdotal."
>
> At issue was an internal Microsoft marketing study that listed the
> primary reason consumers use Microsoft's browser is because "it came
> with my computer."
>
> Kempin also spent part of the day defending Microsoft's restrictions
> on the way PC makers can alter the series of screens a user sees when
> turning on a computer for the first time, arguing that the software
> giant is trying to prevent the "butchering" of Windows. He said
> allowing PC makers to alter Windows would be akin to letting a
> bookseller rip out the first chapter of "Moby Dick."
>
> "We can let the end user rip out the first chapter and burn it,"
> Kempin said. "But what we allow end users is not what we should allow
> distributors."
>
> Reported by Newsbytes News Network, newsbytes.com .
>
>
>
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