Microsoft Response To U.S. Court Decision

Microsoft Response To U.S. Court Of Appeals Decision

AUCKLAND, New Zealand - Friday, June 29, 2001 - In response to the U.S. Court of Appeals decision today, Microsoft Corp. issued the following initial response.

"Microsoft is pleased that the U.S. Court of Appeals has overturned most of the lower court's findings against the company, drastically narrowing the case and removing the breakup cloud from the company."

"The central issue in this case is the fundamental principle that every company must have the ability to innovate and improve its products on behalf of its customers. On this point, we are very pleased that this ruling reverses the District Court's previous ruling and provides a positive framework for Microsoft if these issues have to be retried. Today's ruling creates a better framework for allowing companies to improve products on behalf of consumers by adding new and innovative features."

"While there are some aspects of this ruling on which we didn't prevail, we continue to believe that we face significant competition every day and we must continually improve our products in order to succeed."

"We recognise that as a successful company, we have an important responsibility under the law and to the broader industry. We take that responsibility very seriously, and we will continue to work hard to provide great opportunity for our industry partners and consumers. We also understand that the best outcome for our customers, shareholders, partners and the entire industry is a quick resolution to this case. The case was substantially narrowed today, and we will continue to work toward resolving the remaining issues expeditiously."

Microsoft New Zealand's Managing Director, Geoff Lawrie, says, "We're very pleased that the U.S. Appeals Court ruling has endorsed our right to be innovative with our products on behalf of our customers. What is important is that Microsoft will always conduct our business with honesty and integrity, and will work even harder in the future to take on the responsibility entrusted to us as a software leader."

"In New Zealand, my team and I remain committed to and focused on our customers, our partners and their needs, as we have throughout this case.

As a company, Microsoft thrives in a competitive environment, and the quality of our current products reflects this. We have introduced Windows 2000 successfully to the market and with it brought a new level of agility to businesses. We have just launched Office XP in May and later in the year, customers will see more new and innovative technology with Windows XP and Xbox. More importantly, our .Net vision will give everyone the opportunity to leverage the Internet as never before. We are extremely excited about the future and look forward to having this case come to a close in an expedient and fair way."

About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software - any time, any place and on any device.

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