Microsoft Ireland has moved to reassure customers that its operation here is not threatened by the US Justice department investigation. "We have no reason to believe this will affect Irish operations. The hearing is due in about 10 days time, and Microsoft feels confident the court will find we are complying with the consent decree as agreed with the Department of Justice in 1994," Ms Ann Riordan, general manager of Microsoft Ireland told The Irish Times.
Microsoft has been based in Sandyford, Co Dublin, since 1985. The company employs more than 1,000 people on a permanent basis in Ireland and estimates that it spends about £200 million a year in the Irish economy on wages, materials and services.
The company is comprised of three separate organisations: Microsoft Ireland which sells Microsoft products and services here; the European Operations Centre, which manages Microsoft's European manufacturing, distribution and business transaction processes; and Microsoft Worldwide Product Group (Ireland) which localises all Microsoft software in 25 languages for the European and global market.
One hundred and thirty Irish staff recently worked on the translation of Internet Explorer 4.0 (IE 4.0) into 26 languages.
Microsoft launched its new version of IE 4.0 in Ireland earlier this month. The browser, which can be downloaded free, or comes as part of Windows 95 software, is part of an aggressive move by Microsoft to acquire a larger share of the Irish and international market.
Among the Irish Internet service providers (ISPs) who have agreed to distribute IE 4.0 as their default browser are EUnet, Indigo, Internet Ireland, Ireland On-Line and TINET.
In addition to Microsoft's difficulties with the US Justice Department, the company is also being investigated by the European Commission which is examining contracts between Microsoft and European Internet service providers.
Commission sources have said that while a conclusion to its inquiry is "months away", it is cooperating closely with US antitrust authorities regarding the company's Internet practices. The Commission appears to be examining similar practices to those being explored by the US Justice Department, on its own initiative, having received no complaints about Microsoft's moves on the Internet.
Its investigation is focusing on contracts with Internet service providers which have licences for Microsoft operating system software. Effectively, the inquiry centres around whether Microsoft is obliging licensees to take a licence for another product.
Under a 1994 undertaking given to the European Commission, Microsoft is allowed to develop products to be integrated in its operating systems, but it cannot force licencees to buy other products in return for getting its popular software licences.
