
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, August 2, 1993                   TAG: 9308020066
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: SEATTLE                                LENGTH: Short

JUSTICE DEPARTMENT TO PROBE MICROSOFT

The Justice Department plans to review allegations that Microsoft Corp., the nation's biggest computer software maker, has committed antitrust violations, two newspapers reported said this weekend.

The Federal Trade Commission, which has been investigating Microsoft since 1991, gave the Justice Department its records in the case last week, The Washington Post and The New York Times reported, citing unidentified government sources.

The Justice Department's Antitrust Division could take over the case or leave it in the FTC's hands.

The request for case records reportedly was made by Anne K. Bingaman, chief of the Antitrust Division.

The FTC hasn't publicly acknowledged investigating Microsoft, but the company has discussed the probe and has denied any wrongdoing. The FTC last month deadlocked for the second time this year on whether to bring an administrative complaint against Microsoft.

Competitors, including Novell Inc. and Lotus Development Corp., claim Microsoft purposely designs its products to be incompatible with utility software programs offered by other companies.

They also say Microsoft gains an unfair advantage by giving huge discounts on its MS-DOS operating system to computer manufacturers who pay a royalty on every machine they sell.

by CNB