Subject category:
Strategy and General Management
Published by:
IBS Case Development Center
Length: 11 pages
Data source: Published sources
Topics:
Microsoft versus Windows; Monopoly; Anti-trust violations; William H (Bill) Gates; Steven Ballmer; Justice Thomas Penfold Jackson; Mario Monti's Microsoft verdict; European Competition Commission; Windows operating system; US Justice Department; Business ethics; Microsoft Internet Explorer versus Netscape Navigator; Microsoft Windows Media Player versus Real Media Player; Microsoft rulings; American software industry
Share a link:
https://casecent.re/p/19874
Write a review
|
No reviews for this item
This product has not been used yet
Abstract
Legal proceedings were started against Microsoft in the early 1990s, looking into possible anti-trust violations by the Redmond based software giant. This culminated in Justice Jackson ordering Microsoft to be broken into two, in 2000. An appeals court judgement over-ruled Justice Jackson''s verdict, but upheld the view that Microsoft had indeed used its monopoly position to further its own interests and to kill competition. By the end of the 1990s, Microsoft''s legal woes had taken on a transatlantic dimension, with the European Commission (EC) also investigating alleged monopolistic practices by Microsoft. The EC verdict, in March 2004 asked Microsoft to break up Windows - Microsoft''s operating system - so as not to include software add-ons. The verdict is still up for appeal. The case study delves into the circumstances that led to these drastic verdicts, and directs discussion towards the possible spin-offs they might hold for Microsoft''s future. Could one of the options actually prove beneficial to Microsoft, whereby future strategy might be cemented in terms of Microsoft versus Windows? Students will get a chance to build on facts from the past and to build up possible future business scenarios against the backdrop of the legal verdicts.
About
Abstract
Legal proceedings were started against Microsoft in the early 1990s, looking into possible anti-trust violations by the Redmond based software giant. This culminated in Justice Jackson ordering Microsoft to be broken into two, in 2000. An appeals court judgement over-ruled Justice Jackson''s verdict, but upheld the view that Microsoft had indeed used its monopoly position to further its own interests and to kill competition. By the end of the 1990s, Microsoft''s legal woes had taken on a transatlantic dimension, with the European Commission (EC) also investigating alleged monopolistic practices by Microsoft. The EC verdict, in March 2004 asked Microsoft to break up Windows - Microsoft''s operating system - so as not to include software add-ons. The verdict is still up for appeal. The case study delves into the circumstances that led to these drastic verdicts, and directs discussion towards the possible spin-offs they might hold for Microsoft''s future. Could one of the options actually prove beneficial to Microsoft, whereby future strategy might be cemented in terms of Microsoft versus Windows? Students will get a chance to build on facts from the past and to build up possible future business scenarios against the backdrop of the legal verdicts.