The American Court System

A brief synapsis of what led to the situation Microsoft now finds itself in is presented at the onset of this paper. It includes a brief history and description of U.S. antitrust legislation, a working definition of monopoly, and a summary of the actions of Microsoft that led up to this scenario. Following that the paper takes a point/counter point structure. First, one of the U.S. Department of Justice's points against the software giant is given, accompanied by an analysis of the type of argument being used. Then Microsoft's defense is immediately follows, again with the type and effectiveness of the argument being evaluated. Finally, the paper concludes with some thoughts on the overall effectiveness of the defense and the chances for Microsoft to come out victorious in this battle.

Antitrust regulation in this country was initiated by the lobbying efforts of a group o

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ipped with Windows 95/98 (Microsoft the monopoly, 1999). It is contended that Microsoft's overwhelming market share, coupled with an overriding control of Internet services, will result in Microsoft eventual control of electronic commerce, a market whose growth potential is enormous. The Arguments The Department of Justice has been broadening the scope of this case since its inception way back in 1994, when the Attorney General's office filed a complaint against Microsoft. The purpose of the charge was, in part, to restrain Microsoft from "using exclusionary and anticompetitive contracts to market its personal computer operating system software" (Microsoft the monopoly, 1999, online). The charges read further that "by these contracts [with computer makers], Microsoft has unlawfully maintained its monopoly of personal computer operating systems and has unreasonably restrained trade" (Microsoft the monopoly, 1999, online). The attorney General alleges that the company is taking advantage of its existing Windows monopoly to compound the effects thereof and further entrench the near-single supplier situation that Microsoft currently enjoys. This is an example of an argument from analogy. The Department of Justice is assert
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Dell Corporation, Department Justice, Attorney General's, Microsoft's Internet, On-line Available, Trade Commission, Microsoft Corporation, Department Justice's, Specifically Microsoft, Java Microsoft, on-line available, 1999 online, market share, monopoly 1999, microsoft monopoly, operating system, microsoft monopoly 1999, windows 95, computerworld on-line available, computerworld on-line, department justice, regulation monopolies, government regulation monopolies, monopoly 1999 online, ferranti silwa 1998,
Approximate Word count = 1363
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page)

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