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Suit boosts Win-98 sales
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May 21, 1998: 7:41 a.m. ET
Report says antitrust action has led orders for new software to soar
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - The media frenzy cropping up around Microsoft Corp's troubles with U.S. regulators reportedly has had a curious upside for the software giant: orders for Windows 98 are booming.
The New York Times reported Thursday that computer retailers offering promotional deals on the new system software are chalking up better-than-expected orders for the latest incarnation of industry-dominant Windows.
Executives at retailers Computer City, a unit of Tandy Corp., and CompUSA Inc. told the Times the buzz about the government's suit - the subject of news reports nationwide - has heightened consumer interest and spurred orders.
The Justice Department, 20 states and the District of Columbia filed what is the biggest antitrust suit in a generation against Microsoft Monday for illegally squelching its competition by trying to bundle sales of its web browser to the market-dominant Windows operating system.
But the call for a preliminary injunction against the Redmond, Wash.-based company doesn't seek to delay the release of Windows 98. The suit seeks to force Microsoft to include a rival web browser when it ships Windows 98.
The ironic twist may come back to bite retailers, however. If Microsoft loses its case and is forced to modify the system software, it could disrupt shipments and potentially reduce supplies of Windows 98 on store shelves.
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