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Microsoft rivals react
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April 3, 2000: 8:12 p.m. ET
Several see antitrust ruling as paving the way for better competition
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Microsoft's competitors applauded a federal judge's ruling Monday that the Redmond, Wash.-based software giant violated antitrust laws by trying to monopolize the Web browser market.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson's ruling late Monday that Microsoft violated the Sherman Antitrust Act by unlawfully tying its Web browser to its operating system," could change the competitive landscape in Silicon Valley, which Microsoft has dominated for several years, by reducing Microsoft's hold on the market.
One competitor, Red Hat (RHAT: Research, Estimates), a Durham, N.C.-based leader in the emerging Linux operating system, said the ruling will improve competition in the marketplace and will even ultimately benefit Microsoft.
"It's not good or bad news except in as much as it's going to create more opportunities for competitors such as ourselves to negotiate contracts with Dell and IBM," Red Hat Chairman Robert Young said. "We're successfully creating a lot of interest in the marketplace, but unless our bigger competitor is restrained from doing some of the things it has been doing in the marketplace, it's going to be difficult for us to deliver to the customer."
Young said the only possible negative in the court's decision is a public-relations problem in which the case has forced technology companies to take sides.
"The only inadvertent sort of thing is it sets us up as an either/or," Young said. "You're either with Microsoft or you're against them. The market doesn't want to hear that. The market wants suppliers who have customers' interests in mind. The perception is somehow that we want Microsoft users to fail. We want Microsoft users to succeed better than before."
Red Hat shares slipped 1/4 to 42-1/8 on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange Monday.
Jim Barksdale, former CEO of Netscape, the Web browser that dominated the market before competition with Microsoft overwhelmed the company, said he has personally experienced Microsoft's way of doing business. [482K WAV or 482K AIFF]
Sun Microsystems (SUNW: Research, Estimates) applauded Judge Jackson's decision, saying that only a combination of "stringent structural and behavioral remedies," against Microsoft will ensure healthy competition.
"Today's important decision confirms what almost everybody in the world knows - Microsoft is a monopoly that has acted illegally," said Scott McNealy, Sun's chief executive officer. "The Justice Department and the states deserve immense credit for putting together a case that so clearly showed Microsoft's true colors."
Shares of Sun Microsystems slipped 3-7/8 to 89-13/16 on the Nasdaq Exchange Monday.
Intuit (INTU: Research, Estimates) Chairman and acting CEO Bill Campbell said the decision is crucial to "continued innovation on the Internet and the growth of electronic commerce."
"We trust in the continued good efforts of the Department of Justice and Judge Jackson to determine a fair way to separate the Windows operating system from Microsoft's other businesses," Campbell said."
Intuit shares fell 5-1/16 to 49-5/16 on the Nasdaq Exchange Monday.
Oracle Corp (ORCL: Research, Estimates) said little in a prepared statement beyond saying it hopes that Judge Jackson's remedies will match the seriousness of the violations.
"We're eagerly awaiting the opportunity to review in detail the ruling by Judge Jackson in this most important case affecting our industry," said Dan Cooperman, senior vice president and general counsel for Oracle Corp in a prepared statement. "We hope that the remedies ultimately imposed or agreed upon will be commensurate with the seriousness of the violation of antitrust law, which have now been determined by the court."
Oracle's shares fell 1-3/16 to close at 76-7/8 on the Nasdaq Exchange Monday.
Corel Corp. (CORL: Research, Estimates) was satisfied with the ruling, and expects it will help improve competition.
"For us, anything that is going to enhance competition in the marketplace is going to be a good thing for consumers," said Kathryn Hughes, a spokeswoman for Corel Corp.
Shares of Corel gained 1/8 to 10-5/16 on the Nasdaq Exchange Monday.
Several other major competitors, including Apple Computer Inc. (AAPL: Research, Estimates), International Business Machines Corp. (IBM: Research, Estimates) and Novell Inc. (NOVL: Research, Estimates), all declined any comment on the ruling, or what kind of an effect it will have on the software market. 
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