Microsoft has agreed to allow computer manufacturers to install non-Microsoft programs on desktops running Microsoft operating systems, though Bill Gates’ company will be allowed to continue bundling new programs with Windows. Microsoft will also make certain concessions to competitors, including the disclosure of server protocols so that competing desktop software can run as effectively on Microsoft’s server platforms as Microsoft’s own products.
However, there are Attorneys General representing individual 18 US states that are also parties to the case and they have not yet agreed to the terms of the deal struck with the Department of Justice. They may seek to continue the case against Microsoft, although doing so could be problematic.
The news of settlement has already provoked criticism. Ken Wasch, President of the Software & Information Industry Association, a major US trade association, said:
"The reported settlement agreement, stunningly, will not change either Microsoft's business practices nor its software implementations one iota… In addition, the purported settlement permits Microsoft to continue to technically tie the monopoly product of the Windows operating system to various middleware products, in direct contravention to the findings of fact affirmed unanimously by the Court of Appeals.
"It is inconsistent with the demonstrated, growing effects of Microsoft's monopolistic acts in the internet market. Remarkably, the purported settlement appears to be less than the interim remedies ordered by Judge Jackson prior to the unanimous Court of Appeals ruling… It does nothing to promote competition and innovation despite years of documentation to the contrary."