Jobs blasts Gates' motives for schools giveaway

Apple boss Steve Jobs has hit out at Microsoft and the Department of Justice over the settlement of Microsoft's private anti-trust cases which will see the Seattle giant provide schools with free software and hardware.

The $1bn settlement will see Microsoft donate computer equipment to 14,000 US schools over a five-year period, but Jobs has claimed the settlement gives Microsoft an open door into the education sector - ironically one of the only areas the company doesn't already enjoy dominance.

In a statement released by Apple, Jobs said he is "baffled that a settlement imposed against Microsoft for breaking the law should allow, even encourage, them to unfairly make inroads into education - one of the few markets left where they don't have monopoly power."