Judge Whyte Issues Preliminary Injunction in Sun v. Microsoft

(November 18, 1998)  U.S. District Court Judge Ronald Whyte issued a preliminary injunction on Tuesday, November 17, in the suit brought by Sun Microsystems against Microsoft regarding Microsoft's Java products.

Sun Microsystems filed this lawsuit against Microsoft in October 1997 alleging that Microsoft violated their 1996 licensing agreement. Microsoft had labeled and promoted its MSIE 4.0 and Java development software as Java Compatible.  Sun asserted that Microsoft's Java products failed its compatibility tests, and were thus in violation of the agreement.

Federal District Court Judge Ronald Whyte issued a Preliminary Injunction on March 24, 1998. That order bars Microsoft from using the Java Compatible Logo on its Internet Explorer 4.0 and Java development software.  The ruling did not enjoin Microsoft from selling any software products.

The preliminary injunction issued yesterday is far broader. It requires Microsoft to modify all its software products that ship with Java technologies to pass Sun's Java compatibility test suite. The order affects MS Internet Explorer 4.0, Windows 98, Windows NT 4.0, and the development tool, Visual J++ 6.0.  The order gives Microsoft 90 days to come into compliance.

Microsoft described the ruling in a statement as follows:

"The ruling requires Microsoft to support Sun's Java Native Interface (JNI) in the Microsoft Java virtual machine and requires Microsoft to turn off by default certain Microsoft-specific keywords in its development tools. Customers using Microsoft products today with Java programming language support are not affected by the ruling, nor are developers prevented from taking advantage of great Windows features in Java programs."

After the ruling, Alan Baratz, President of Java Software at Sun, said in a press release, "While this case proceeds through the court, we'll continue to use our enormous energy in the marketplace -- as will the other companies that are the cornerstones of the Java technology industry -- to deliver high performing Java technology that outperforms Microsoft's incompatible technology." Baratz continued that, "We'll continue to deliver technologies such as Java Plug-In that give developers and users the choice to replace Microsoft's polluted technology with Sun's compatible Java technology."

Microsoft Statement.
Re: Preliminary Injunction.
Date: November 17, 1998.

Microsoft to Support Java Developers and Consumers in Complying with Court's Preliminary Ruling

Customer Access to Microsoft Products Not Impeded

REDMOND, Wash. - Nov. 17, 1998 - Microsoft Corp. announced Tuesday that it will comply with the preliminary ruling issued by Federal District Court Judge Ronald H. Whyte in its contractual dispute with Sun Microsystems Inc.

The ruling requires Microsoft to support Sun's Java Native Interface (JNI) in the Microsoft Java virtual machine and requires Microsoft to turn off by default certain Microsoft-specific keywords in its development tools. Customers using Microsoft products today with Java programming language support are not affected by the ruling, nor are developers prevented from taking advantage of great Windows features in Java programs.

The Judge's order allows 90 days for compliance with the injunction, which gives Microsoft time to ensure there is no interruption in the shipment of any products to customers.

"While we are obviously disappointed with this preliminary ruling, we are gratified that the court's order should not impact customers using Microsoft products today, nor will any products be recalled," said Paul Maritz, group vice president of platforms and applications at Microsoft. "Further, the Judge has upheld Microsoft's right to innovate and offer developers the choice of building great Windows applications using the Java language even when complying with the Court's order."

"We respect the Court's ruling and are reviewing our legal options," said Tom Burt, associate general counsel. "This is a preliminary ruling on a very technical contract interpretation issue involved in this lawsuit. Microsoft has brought new and innovative Java technology to our customers. The Court has confirmed Microsoft's right to modify and improve the Java technologies it licensed from Sun, but has preliminarily determined that Microsoft may have overstepped the limitations of our license from Sun in a couple of respects in giving programming choices to Java developers."

Microsoft is focused on ensuring that its customers are minimally impacted by the Court's order. This is a preliminary ruling and only one step in this broader lawsuit. Microsoft remains confident that once all the facts are presented to the Court, Microsoft will be seen to be in compliance with its contract.

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of products and services for business and personal use, each designed with the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take advantage of the full power of personal computing every day.

Sun Microsystems Statement.
Re: Preliminary Injunction.
Date: November 17, 1998.

Sun Statement Re: Court Ruling in Response to Sun's Motions for Preliminary Injunction in Sun v. Microsoft

NOVEMBER 17, 1998

Today the court found that Sun Microsystems, Inc. is likely to prevail on the merits and granted Sun's request for injunction.

The court ordered that if Microsoft ships products that include the Java^TM technology, it must change those products within 90 days to address their failure to pass Sun's compatibility test suite.

"We're extremely pleased that the court has granted our request for injunction," said Michael Morris, vice president and general counsel, Sun Microsystems, Inc.

"While this case proceeds through the court, we'll continue to use our enormous energy in the marketplace -- as will the other companies that are the cornerstones of the Java technology industry -- to deliver high performing Java technology that outperforms Microsoft's incompatible technology," said Alan Baratz, president of Java Software at Sun Microsystems, Inc. "We'll continue to deliver technologies such as Java Plug-In that give developers and users the choice to replace Microsoft's polluted technology with Sun's compatible Java technology."

CONTACT: Sun Microsystems
Lisa Poulson, 408/343-1630 or 800/559-1029