Microsoft Shouldn't Be Broken Up, Candidate Bush Says (Update2)
By Richard Keil
Microsoft Shouldn't Be Broken Up, Candidate Bush Says (Update2)
(Rewrites 5th, 6th paragraphs.)
Stony Brook, New York, March 3 (Bloomberg) -- Republican
presidential front-runner George W. Bush said he opposes breaking
up Microsoft Corp. as a way to resolve the government's antitrust
case against the software giant.
State and federal antitrust enforcers have said breaking up
the No. 1 software company is a sanction they could propose if
U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson finds
Microsoft's business practices violated the Sherman Antitrust Act.
Asked before a campaign event today on Long Island whether
Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft should be broken up, Bush
said, ``I'm against it.'
``There has got to be a better remedy than to break up a
successful company that employs lots of people,' Bush said in an
interview.
Bush's comments, his clearest statement to date on the
Microsoft case, come as he's seeking to extend his lead over
Senator John McCain in the Republican race. The governor's stance
on the Microsoft case could have consequences in next Tuesday's
primaries and caucuses in 13 states, particularly in delegate-rich
California, home to some of Microsoft's business rivals.
Bush stepped into the Microsoft debate two days before his
win in Tuesday's primary in Washington state, when the Seattle
Times quoted him as telling reporters, ``I think the great fear is
that Microsoft will be broken up.' One Bush aide later said the
governor was referring to the fears of Microsoft employees and
investors in that statement, according to the Washington Post.
Bush advisers today denied reports in the Washington Post
that contributors from the computer industry who compete with
Microsoft have complained about the governor's apparent support of
Microsoft.
Waiting for Jackson
Judge Jackson concluded in findings of fact last year that
Microsoft had a monopoly over personal computer operating software
and has repeatedly tried to squelch competition to defend its
market dominance. Microsoft contends its actions were legal.
The judge's decision on whether Microsoft broke the law is
expected in the coming weeks. If, as many legal experts predict,
Jackson rules against Microsoft, he would convene hearings on what
sanctions to impose. Microsoft and the Department of Justice are
engaged in settlement talks now.
When asked today if he favored an alternative penalty, Bush
said he didn't have one. Rapid innovation in computer and software
technology already have helped erase the technological dominance
Microsoft once wielded over its competitors, Bush said.
``With technology, what was happening two years ago (when the
Microsoft case was brought) has been left in the dust,' Bush
said. ``Things are changing rapidly.'
States Still Have Say
Even if Bush becomes president, he wouldn't necessarily be
able to determine the outcome of the case. Antitrust enforcers for
the 19 states suing the company alongside the U.S. Justice
Department could still seek a break up, even if a Bush
administration backed away from that option.
Bush's influence would be greatest if Microsoft successfully
appealed an adverse ruling. The Bush administration could then
decide to drop the litigation, though again, the states could
pursue it to the Supreme Court.
Some Silicon Valley technology company executives have
quietly cheered the government's successes in the antitrust case
against Microsoft. A California software rival, Netscape
Communications Corp., now part of America Online Inc., provided
evidence and testimony for the government's case against
Microsoft.
Trial testimony by an executive of another Silicon Valley
company, microprocessor maker Intel Corp., revealed that
comnpany's tensions with Microsoft, the leading maker of operating
system software.
Microsoft leads all computer companies this election cycle in
soft money contributions to both the Democratic and Republican
parties, according to records filed with the Federal Election
Commission.
Microsoft has given $386,000 in soft money to Republicans and
$259,000 to Democrats, according to a study of those records by
the Center for Responsive Politics.
Bush has received support from both Microsoft and its
computer industry competitors. According to the CRP analysis, he
raised $698,000 from the computer industry, including $33,450 from
Microsoft employees. |
