The Explorer: Microsoft's Loss Is Not Consumers' Gain

Ironically, the same cheap machines that Windows made possible also can run Linux, the BeOS, FreeBSD, Solaris, Mandrake, and a whole bevy of vigorous and fast-growing competitor OSes. But the Court maintains that these Oses -- and the whole Linux phenomenon, for example -- really amount to nothing: To admit that there is strong and growing competition in the OS space would weaken the argument that Microsoft is unassailable. (I'll bet the people in the Linux community are amused to hear that the Court thinks that what they're doing every day -- gaining market share on Microsoft -- is impossible.)

Has Microsoft behaved badly? Yes; surely. But it seems to me that the main targets of Microsoft's bad practices were its competitors, not consumers. (Check out the quote at the top of the column!) While Microsoft may well have gone too far in some important areas, I believe a balanced view -- a view I naively thought the Courts were supposed to provide -- would weigh the excesses against the benefits, and arrive at a just perspective that seeks to remedy the bad practices while preserving the good.

Instead, this Court seems to have focused almost entirely on the negatives and ignored the positives. To me, it looks as if the Court is moving toward a harsh and punitive judgment -- such as breaking up Microsoft -- that I believe will do far more harm to consumers than good.

Why? Simply because, on balance, I believe consumers have benefited far more than that have been harmed by Microsoft. And while that does not excuse its excesses, in my mind it surely does mitigate them. In overreacting to Microsoft's excesses, I fear the Court just may toss out the baby with the bathwater.

But what's your take? Check out the additional resources (below) and then join in the discussion. Is Microsoft as totally evil as the Court contends? Do you feel Microsoft has harmed you, as a consumer? Should Microsoft be broken up? Will Microsoft be able to avert a harsh judgment through a negotiated settlement? Join in the discussion!

To discuss this column with other readers, please visit Fred Langa's forum on the Listening Post.

To find out more about Fred Langa, please visit his page on the Listening Post.