Ibexx & all, - "US House leader defends Microsoft"
infoworld.com
By Nancy Weil
InfoWorld Electric
Posted at 11:59 AM PT, Mar 4, 1998
The U.S. government should back down from investigating Microsoft for alleged anti-competitive practices
because the software maker has "revolutionized our economy," Dick Armey, Majority Leader in the U.S. House
of Representatives, told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday.
Armey's comments, posted at a House World Wide Web site Wednesday, came after testimony from Microsoft
Chairman and CEO Bill Gates during a hearing in the committee, which is one of the U.S. government bodies
looking into the company's business practices. (See Gates grilled by Senate committee.)
"Remember when IBM was supposed to be the uncatchable leader of the high-tech world? Market forces, not
the heavy hand of government, worked," Armey said. "Entrepreneurs saw opportunities and flocked to
high-tech markets, as they continue to do today."
Referring to testimony from Gates and other technology industry leaders Tuesday, Armey said, "America's top
entrepreneurs who testified before the Senate today -- and many others like them -- have created the most
productive economy in the history of the world. Microsoft has revolutionized our economy precisely because it
has been free to innovate with minimal government interference.
"Freedom works. The Justice Department and the U.S. Congress should quit meddling where they are not
needed." |
