By almost every sign, the court decision Friday upholding Microsoft's antitrust settlement with the Justice Department looks like a big win for the software giant. Microsoft officials who once feared a breakup of the company gloated about the favorable ruling. Critics griped that it lets the lawbreaking monopolist off too easy. Shareholders sent Microsoft stock up nearly 6% Monday.
A one-sided victory for Microsoft would be bad news for consumers. As the evidence during nearly five years of litigation showed, Microsoft was perfectly willing to use its Windows operating-system monopoly to crush competitors. Now, the fear is that an unrestrained Microsoft will continue to starve consumers of a choice among new high-tech products and services coming onto the market.
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