• Recommend:
• 0 Comments

Sun Files Injunction Against Microsoft Regarding Java in Win 98

Latest suit isn%squott likely to impact the ship date, analysts say.

By Brian McWilliams, PCWorld   

%dquotWe%squotre not seeking an injunction to stop the shipment of Windows 98,%dquot said Baratz. %dquotWe%squotre simply seeking to ensure that if Windows 98 includes any implementation of the Java platform, it includes a fully compatible version of the platform.%dquot

Sun%squots suit asks the court to force Microsoft to comply with any of three options:

• That it ship Win 98 with a version of Java that is 100 percent pure.
• That if it decides to ship the incomplete version, it include Sun%squots Java run-time with the operating system.
• That it remove all implementation of Java from Win 98.

The new contract dispute suit comes just days before the U.S. Department of Justice and several state attorneys general are expected to file antitrust actions against Microsoft.

Baratz said Sun%squots decision to file now was not related in any way to those suits. Instead, it%squots based on Sun%squots recently completed review of Internet Explorer source code, which Microsoft was required to provide to Sun in a March court order. Rather than coming into compliance, Baratz claims that Microsoft has since added further changes to its Java Virtual Machine that will break the write once, run anywhere promise of Java.

No Impact On Ship Date
Richard Gray of the San Jose law firm of Bergeson, Eliopoulos, Grady & Gray says Sun%squots lawsuit is unlikely to impact the release of Windows 98 to PC makers this Friday. In fact, because of a busy docket, the court may not hold its first hearing on the injunction until around the time of the retail release of Win 98 on June 25.

To further underscore that it doesn%squott intend to block Windows 98, Sun today said that it has asked the court to grant it a hearing on or after July 31.

A similar delay would face any lawsuits filed by states or the Justice Department, says Gray. So even if anyone takes action this week, it%squots unlikely that they%squotll be able to prevent Windows 98 from making it into the hands of PC makers.

The latest word is that a Justice Department action will come by Thursday. We%squotll keep you posted if and when it hits.

Tune in to PC World News Radio to hear today%squots news broadcast via RealAudio.