Microsoft verdict: US Attorney-General welcomes split ruling

US Attorney-General Janet Reno welcomed the Microsoft court ruling this evening and said it would "promote competition in the software industry".

Department of Justice officials congratulated each other at a late afternoon press conference in Washington DC. Assistant Attorney-General, Joel Klein, said: "The most important document in this whole trial was the court's 208-page finding of fact. It showed two crucial things. First, that Microsoft had an all-pervasive monopoly power. And second, that federal courts could understand the complexities of the high-tech industry."

In response to questions from the floor, another official said the critical fact in the verdict was its declaration that Microsoft was 'untrustworthy'. "The Court of Appeals persuaded Judge Jackson that behavioural remedies were not enough," he said. "These remedies fit the crime. They are far-reaching, structural changes that rely on the free market, not continued policing."