Wednesday, November 18, 1998

Injunction orders Microsoft to change products that don't meet Java standard

By MARTHA MENDOZA AP Business Writer

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - A federal judge Tuesday ordered Microsoft Corp. to change Windows 98 and other software to make it meet Sun Microsystems Inc.'s standards for Java programming language or stop shipping the products all together.

The preliminary injunction said Microsoft has 90 days to change any products it ships that fail to pass Sun's compatibility test for Java. It does not involve software that has already been shipped and sold.

Palo Alto-based Sun Microsystems filed suit against the Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft last October, seeking $35 million in damages for allegedly developing and distributing a Windows-only form of the language.

In granting the injunction, U.S. District Judge Ronald Whyte said Sun was likely to prevail on the merits of the lawsuit and that it could suffer irreparable harm if Microsoft didn't make the changes.

Sun's leaders said the ruling will help them in the coming months.

"While this case proceeds through the court, we'll continue to use our enormous energy in the marketplace - as will the other companies that are the cornerstones of the Java technology industry - to deliver high-performing Java technology that outperforms Microsoft's incompatible technology," said Alan Baratz, president of Java Software at Sun Microsystems.

Microsoft legal counsel Tom Burt said Microsoft was still studying the ruling and has not made a decision whether to appeal. He noted that it is a preliminary injunction, still subject to the court hearing facts and evidence.

"We look forward to getting all that evidence in front of the court," Burt added.

Paul Maritz, vice president for Microsoft's platforms and applications group, said the ruling is a "fairly technical order" aimed at specific mechanisms on using Java. He also said the judge recognized Microsoft's right to create extensions to Java and to innovate in that area.

"The judge has been very clear that this does not affect Microsoft's existing customers," Maritz told reporters Tuesday night. "Microsoft is not required to recall any products. And we have 90 days to comply with this order, and the judge has left the door open for us to go back for more time if we need it."

Maritz said new shipments of Windows 98 would be modified to comply with the order. He would not estimate the cost of changing the software, other than to say it was "nontrivial" but "well within our capabilities."

In the lawsuit, Sun Microsystems accused Microsoft of trying to make it impossible for Java to become a universal programming language.

But evidence from Microsoft indicates that at least some at Sun thought the contract between the two companies allowed Microsoft to use Java in that way.

Sun's accusations are also a key part of the Justice Department's litigation against Microsoft in the antitrust trial in Washington, D.C.

Java, introduced by Sun Microsystems in 1995, potentially allows developers to write a software program once and have it run on a wide variety of computers, regardless of the underlying operating system.

Baratz said he would like to help Microsoft incorporate the requirements from the judge.

"This is an opportunity for Microsoft to rejoin the Java community," he said. "We'd be more than happy to help Microsoft do the development work."

No court dates have been set, but Sun executives said they will push for a quick trial and at that time will request the injunction be made permanent. In addition, they said they will seek financial compensation.