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Technology Stocks : COMS & the Ghost of USRX w/ other STUFF -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: jhild who wrote (10653)	12/14/1997 12:18:00 AM
From: Scrapps	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 22053

>>>I believe there is great opportunity for mischief. I think we have seen some of that mischief exposed in the contracting language that they have forced on CPQ, DELL, et al.<<< Jhild I must scold you for that statement. Micheal Dell has said the oppsite. Here are some other things to check out. ------------------------------------------------------------ PC makers plan to keep shipping Microsoft browser (Updates lead, adds Compaq, graf 10) By Martin Wolk SEATTLE, Dec 12 (Reuters) - The world's biggest personal computer makers said Friday they expect to continue shipping Microsoft Corp.'s Internet Explorer browser on new units despite a federal court decision freeing them to leave it off. ''We will continue to bundle IE 4 with Windows 95,'' said Micron Electronics Inc. spokeswoman Denise Smith. ''It's what our customers are demanding.'' A supply and demand kind of thing...huh. Micron was among several manufacturers that tried unsuccessfully to eliminate Internet Explorer or its desktop icon from some models in favor of rival Netscape Communications Corp. The manufacturers were forced to back down when Microsoft warned it would terminate their right to ship the Windows 95 operating system if they tampered with the browser, according to court documents. Under a preliminary injunction issued late Thursday, Microsoft can no longer require computer makers to ship the browser as a condition for licensing Windows 95. But while Netscape hinted of a new round of ''aggressive'' pricing to lure computer makers back into its fold, Microsoft's browser is free of charge, and the latest version released in October, Internet Explorer 4.0, has won strong reviews. I know...there is no such thing as a free lunch. Microsoft spokesman Greg Shaw said 70 percent of computer makers already ship IE 4.0 even though licensing agreements currently in force only require them to ship the previous version 3.0 of the browser. Do they also ship NN? ''It's our overwhelming experience that our customers want an Internet browser when they get a computer from us,'' said T.R. Reid, a spokesman for Dell Computer Corp., the second-biggest PC maker. ''We provide IE 4.0 because we can do it easily, we can do it conveniently, we can do it free of charge.'' Lunch may not be free...but it sure is looking inexpensive. No. 1 PC maker Compaq Computer Corp. and No. 3 International Business Machines Corp. also plan to continue shipping IE with Windows 95, officials of the two companies said. Some computer makers preload both major browserss as part of a standard software package, and many give customers the option of requesting the Netscape browser for an extra charge to reflect the software company's licensing fee. I've never paid for NN...have you? Otherwise, customers would have to buy Netscape's software separately or download it from the Internet, giving Microsoft an advantage that has helped it gain browser market share. Microsoft, however, says that most of its browser customers get the software through other channels led by Internet service providers. Consumers can also get the software free off the Internet, and Microsoft provides free licenses to thousands of corporate and government users. Computer manufacturers declined to comment on the prospectes for Microsoft's Windows 98 operating system update, due out in next year's second quarter. That's a smart play. Microsoft's Shaw said he expected the decision to have no impact on the release date of Windows 98, although he said company lawyers were still reviewing the court order, which he called ''pretty broad, and in some cases somewhat vague.'' ------------------------------------------------- Judge renders split decision on Microsoft WASHINGTON (Wired) - A federal judge Thursday rendered a split decision on a US Justice Department attempt to bar Microsoft from forcing computer-makers to bundle its Internet Explorer browser along with the company's Windows 95 operating system. US District Court Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson ordered the software superpower to stop requiring that PC makers to deploy the browser with Windows 95. But he rejected the government's request for a contempt-of-court citation and a $1 million a day fine for alleged violations of his 1995 court order that sought to restrain how the company leverages its marketplace dominance in desktop operating systems. Microsoft argued that the 1995 order allowed it to integrate software with its operating system, and that its efforts to compel manufacturers such as Compaq, Dell, and Gateway 2000 to accept Internet Explorer as the browser of choice was no more than an attempt at achieving integration. The government held that the practice was part of a clear Microsoft strategy to seize dominance in the browser marketplace and bury its single rival, Netscape. The lasting practical effect of Jackson's decision could be limited because Microsoft has moved rapidly toward a new browser/operating system scheme in which Internet Explorer 4.0 is merged with the Windows 95 desktop. So PC makers wanting to license the next version of the operating system, Windows 98, will have little choice but to accept a piece of software that has a browser as its most prominent desktop feature. That is what I referred to earlier, about the expert on TV.