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Technology Stocks : How high will Microsoft fly? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Scotsman who wrote (8127)	5/28/1998 11:14:00 PM
From: Dwight E. Karlsen	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 74651

"MSFT Gives Gateway Permission to Install Other Options." In other words, it indicates that prior to this, Gateway had no choice. But you're assuming that, simply based on inference. We do not know the facts yet. I find it odd that Gateway hasn't come clean and acknowledged what the exact terms of past contracts have been. I am opposed to exclusive contracts with OEMs, simply because it limits the choice for consumers as to what they would like to have preloaded. But for the sake of argument, let's assume that MSFT has previously prohibited Gateway from preloading Netscape's browser. Why was HP and Sony not barred from preloading Netscape's browser on the HP Kayak and Sony Vaio machines? Okay, so we'll have to assume that MSFT was unfairly targeting GTW. Does that really make sense? Clearly GTW struck some kind of deal, whereby GTW got the MSFT product real cheap, presumably cheaper than Sony or HP. But in any case, according to a recent C/Net article, not only is GTW and NEC now offering Netscape (so there's a known four large OEMs now, counting HP and Sony), but a string of other OEMs are expected to follow suit (pardon the pun) and also be offering Netscape's browser. We don't know if they were previously barred by MSFT or not. I personally think it's just that the OEM's were too cheap to go that little extra way, and now it looks good to jump on the bandwagon. You can't blame MSFT for every peice of software that doesn't get preloaded. At some point the PC OEM has to pick and choose how much software they want to bundle with the machine. All this being said, it looks like the Netscape issue is going to be completely moot, with the majority of OEMs preloading Netscape either standard or as an option. The question I have is this: Since the centerpiece of the DOJ complaint revolved directly around Netscape, what more reason would there be to go for a break-up of the company, other than retribution? If they do still go for breakup (which I think is unlikely), then we will know that Joel Klein is simply in this for the publicity and the "feather in his cap" as being "da Man" that "blew up" Microsoft.