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Microsoft vs. professors
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September 29, 1998: 6:35 a.m. ET
Software giant fights Harvard, MIT researchers for confidential research
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - As it mounts its defense against government antitrust charges, Microsoft Corp. is fighting to get its hands on conversations recorded by two research professors in which Netscape Navigator executives reportedly admit their marketplace woes are due to internal business decisions -- not unfair competition.
Microsoft, which is due to in court Oct. 15, wants to use the Netscape research and taped conversations recorded by Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology professors as the "centerpiece" of its defense, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.
But the research team, which recorded the conversations for a book, said the Netscape executives agreed to the interview on condition of privacy. They argue that releasing the tapes threatens the future of academic research.
The Journal said the universities objected to Microsoft's request for its research in federal court in Boston on behalf of professors David Yoffie, of Harvard Business School, and Michael Cusumano, of MIT's Sloan School of Business. They are co-authors of the book, "Competing on Internet Time: Lessons from Netscape and its Battle with Microsoft," that is scheduled to be published by the Free Press division of Simon & Schuster within days of the start of the Microsoft trial.
During the research, the professors recorded private interviews with Netscape executives in which the company officials apparently acknowledge mistakes in their efforts to compete, the Journal reported. These tapes were originally due to be turned over to Microsoft by Monday morning.
At the same time, Microsoft revealed new evidence it will use in the case filed against the company by the Justice Department and 20 states, which allege the software giant used its marketplace dominance to stifle competition.
The evidence is expected to show that meetings between competitors are common in the business world.
The government's complaint, filed in May, alleges Microsoft tried to leverage its dominance in operating systems to muscle its way into the Internet browser market.
Shares of Microsoft (MSFT) were down 1-3/4 at 111-5/16 on the Nasdaq. 
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