Microsoft outpaces legal foes with Windows XP

The hands of Microsoft Corp.'s programmers may be outpacing the hands of its legal critics, as the software giant prepares to ship the final version of Windows XP just as its antitrust case heads to a new trial court.

Microsoft signalled last week that it would release the "Gold Code" for its forthcoming operating system to PC manufacturers on Friday, when it expects to have finished removing bugs from the software. The company's chief executive officer, Steve Ballmer, confirmed Monday at a technical meeting in Sao Paulo, Brazil, that Microsoft expects to meet the Friday deadline "with a little bit of luck," according to an Associated Press report.

Meanwhile, Microsoft's antitrust case is expected to move back to the trial court level as soon as Friday, where it will be reviewed by a new judge. The judge will be charged with crafting a new set of remedies to impose against the software maker, which has been found guilty of violating antitrust law to squash competitors.

Some government officials and industry opponents have raised concerns that features in Windows XP repeat antitrust violations the company has been found guilty of already, prompting speculation that the company's critics will ask the trial court for an injunction preventing the operating system from being launched as planned on Oct. 25.

However, one legal expert said Microsoft's quick moves to get the product through its sales channels and out to customers may help it to skirt any injunction. Microsoft has already told PC makers they can ship computers running Windows XP before the planned Oct. 25 launch date, adding to the time pressure on its legal opponents.

"The further along Microsoft is in the development process, the more it is able to argue to a judge that the government waited too long to react," said Emmett Stanton, an attorney at the law firm Fenwick & West LLP who has closely followed the case.

Furthermore, while various privacy groups and industry rivals to Microsoft have expressed concerns about Windows XP, "they seem to be relying on the government to act," he said.

One of the lead states involved in the case declined to comment Tuesday on whether the states will push for an injunction to prevent Windows XP from shipping. "We certainly are talking strategy about the case, but it's off limits to discuss what we might do next," said Bob Brammer, a spokesman for the Iowa's attorney general's office.

A spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Justice did not respond Tuesday to questions about what steps the government planned to take, or whether it planned to file an injunction with the new trial judge.

Even if legal opponents do ask for an injunction, Stanton said any action to stop Windows XP from reaching customers is unlikely to bear fruit.

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