Microsoft

Microsoft=s Downfall

By Adam Korngold

The Justice Department has accused Microsoft of having an unfair advantage in the software industry, and trying to monopolize the software industry. Most recently the government has accused Microsoft of unfairly gaining market share in the Internet browser market from its biggest competitor, Netscape Communications.

Although Microsoft is giving their Microsoft Explorer product away for free, the government is suing them for trying to put another competitor out of business, something that is illegal according to the anti-trust laws. Microsoft and many other analysts claim that giving away a product for free is not hurting consumers. On the other hand, the government feels that by doing this, Microsoft is putting Netscape out of business. Microsoft is using their financial power to try to put smaller Netscape Communications out of business, and then eventually trying to have a monopoly over the Internet browser market.

Microsoft started as a very small software company in the early 1980=s. Its founder, Bill Gates, convinced IBM to use its operating software in the first IBM PC. Since then, Microsoft has grown into a 207 billion dollar software giant and has surpassed 17 billion in annual revenues that are growing at 30%-40% a year. It now makes not just operating systems, but has the number one word processing software, Microsoft Word, spreadsheet software, Microsoft Excel, internet browser, Microsoft Internet Explorer, Microsoft Fox-pro and Access, and Web Page Creator, Microsoft Front Page. Compare that to only five years ago, when there were individual companies that had the greatest market share in ONE specific product. Novell=s Word Perfect, Lotus=s spreadsheet 123, and Ashton Tate=s D-Base=s data base software. Today all of these programs that are necessary to run a computer are produced by one company, Microsoft. Microsoft has succeeded in putting all of its competitors out of business, or in financial trouble. This is worrying the United States Justice Department.

The Department of Justice has a long history of controlling the size of a company in the best interest of the consumers. If a company has a monopoly over a certain market, it can charge whatever it wants, and consumers have to pay whatever it charges. Although Bill Gates claims that he will not do this, the Justice department is still suspicious of the Microsoft Monopoly. This goes against the ALaissez-faire@ policy of the 1800=s when the government didn=t get involved and businesses grew into mega size monopolies.