Microsoft in more antitrust hot-water

SEARCH ENGINE outfit Google asked a federal judge yesterday to extend the consent decree that settled the landmark antitrust case against Microsoft.

The consent decree decided how Microsoft should behave after it lost its antitrust case in 2003. Some of the requirements are due to expire soon, but others have been extended until 2009.

Google said that it had competition concerns involving Vista. While Vole had agreed to modify Vista to address the concerns, Google thinks that much more may need to be done to provide a truly unbiased choice of desktop search products.

Vole has only given vague descriptions about what it will do to Vista and by the time it goes into effect any antitrust consent decree will have already have expired.

Microsoft spokesman Jack Evans told Sciam.com that the government was happy with the way that it had addressed Google's concerns and that should be the end of the matter.

More here. µ