Instead, the case will now be returned to a federal district judge on Friday who will be asked to find remedies for the software giant’s abuse of its monopoly position. The appeals court had previously upheld the finding of Microsoft’s guilt, but rejected the original district judge’s ruling to break the company in two.
Microsoft plans to launch Windows XP, its new version of the Windows operating system, on 25th October. Observers believe it had hoped to postpone the question of remedy until after XP’s launch, to avoid the risk of a finding that XP should be blocked to avoid further abuse of the Microsoft's monopoly position.
The Supreme Court must still decide whether to accept Microsoft’s request for an appeal. Its ruling is expected in October.