The U.S. Justice Department on Friday said it had reached an antitrust settlement with Microsoft Corp. that calls for the software giant to give computer makers more flexibility and share the inner workings of its Windows operating system with other software firms.
The pact, which must be approved by a federal judge and is not yet endorsed by the states that joined the case, is a far cry from splitting the company in two, a remedy sought by the previous administration under President Clinton.
The settlement would allow computer manufacturers to work with other software developers and place their products on Microsoft's MSFT.O Windows system, and prevent the software giant from punishing anyone who makes or uses competing products, the department said.
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