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

To: Frank Ellis Morris who wrote (16381)	2/18/1999 5:38:00 PM
From: LindyBill	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 74651

I think it now time for all shareholders to show some concern and begin expressing their outrage. Frank, for you, and others who care, here is an excellent editorial on the subject:http://www.aynrand.org/medialink/microsoft.html

To: Frank Ellis Morris who wrote (16381)	2/18/1999 5:40:00 PM
From: t2	Respond to of 74651

Frank--great post!! I believe the big shots like Joel Klein (or even Janet Reno) are weighing the consequences of what their actions would mean--on the economy and even shareholders. You are right that there would be chaos and a tremendous cost to the ecomony. I bet you that Klein knows this and will be cautious of what he proposes at the remedy stage. Boies , the former IBM lawyer, of course wants blood but won't be supported by anyone.

To: Frank Ellis Morris who wrote (16381)	2/18/1999 6:04:00 PM
From: Paul Shread	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 74651

Here here. Actually, the history of antitrust lawsuits is that by the time they are settled, competitors have arisen or the market has changed, thus making the suit unnecessary to begin with, and this goes all the way back to Standard Oil in 1912. MSFT can probably delay any action or settlement until a more favorable Administration comes into power, as happened in the early 80s. But I agree with you -- this is just a ridiculous display of government grandstanding and arrogance. Bad companies (i.e., NSCP) do not make good law. The tech world is full of companies with good products and lousy business practices that ultimately failed. Why doesn't the government just sue the leader in every area of technology, i.e., INTC, LU, CSCO, etc.? Excuse me. I forgot they're already taking on INTC. I guess the government is playing its own version of the Gorilla Game, called the Guerilla Game.

To: Frank Ellis Morris who wrote (16381)	2/18/1999 6:45:00 PM
From: RTev	Respond to of 74651

Sigh... Those big-gov big-meanies are not in this in order to destroy the US economy. The whole point of antitrust laws is to strengthen the economy. The government cannot win this case unless they can show that Microsoft's actions in a narrow range of situations stifle competition and the economic expansion that competition is assumed to engender. The DOJ and the states (an important element when it comes to the penalty phase) will have to show that any remedy they propose will increase economic vitality in the market for desktop OSes. I still believe that any solution that is finally proposed -- and especially any solution that Microsoft might finally agree to -- will be beneficial to shareholders. To consider just one possibility (even though I still think it's unlikely), you said, "Microsoft is not an ATT that can just easily be broken up." It's not AT&T, mostly because it would be easier to break up Microsoft into autonomous vertical organizations. Microsoft already functions as a number distinct groups. The groups are constantly being rearranged by some kind of bizarre Dilbert-esqe process that nobody fully understands, but however they are arranged, they remain quite distinct. They're even geographically distinct within Microsoft's sprawling campus. Splitting those groups into separate companies would be hardly noticeable by those who work within a group. There would, indeed, be infrastructure problems since all of those groups are served by the same network, get management help from the same HR department, and so on, but it's nothing compared to the difficulty AT&T faced in separating its Long Lines network from the RBOC network.

To: Frank Ellis Morris who wrote (16381)	2/18/1999 10:11:00 PM
From: ToySoldier	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 74651

LOL! Frank you are very funny in your post about outrage on hurting poor MSFT. Get use to it because it is only a matter of time before MSFT finally gets put down for breaking the law!!! And contrary to your gloom and doom on how putting the reins on MSFT will devastate the US and world economies - nothing could be further from the truth. But your fire and brimstone speech made for entertaining reasons. And they call me biased!!! ROFL!!! Anyone with a sense of reality will love to hear this post. You dont mind if I point to this posting on some other boards as a source of entertainment - do you? You guys kill me. The DOJ WILL win the case and after MSFT loses its last appeal the remedial action will be applied (whatever it is). Your stock will be negatively affected - no matter how thick your rose-coloured glasses folks. You are likely starting to see the smart Wall Street investor getting nervous that the date is getting close and realizing that the media have begun to turn on MSFT like wolves smell fresh meat. Its MSFT's turn. Toy