Microsoft wins stay of Java order

CNET News.com ^ | February 3, 2003 | Declan McCullagh

[HAL9000]

Microsoft received a reprieve on Monday from a court order requiring the company to ship Sun Microsystems' Java software.

The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted Microsoft a stay of a Jan. 21 decision from U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz in Baltimore, who gave the company 120 days to begin including Sun's latest Java runtime environment in every copy of Windows and Internet Explorer.

Earlier in the day, Microsoft had said that it would comply with Motz's order by beginning to ship an updated version of Windows XP Service Pack 1 that includes a more current Java Runtime Environment from Sun.

Monday's decision means that Motz's injunction will be on hold unless the appeals court upholds the order. No hearing has been scheduled yet.

"We are pleased the Fourth Circuit has stayed the court order and agreed to hear our appeal on an expedited basis," a Microsoft representative said. "It's appropriate that this matter be decided by the circuit court before we would be required to move forward with implementing the injunction."

In a statement sent to reporters, Sun's vice president of legal affairs Lee Patch said: "We regret the 4th Circuit Court's decision. The preliminary injunctions granted by the district court will benefit consumers and the Java community's developers, enterprises and system vendors."

Sun has sued its rival for $1 billion, claiming Microsoft had tried to thwart the commercial success of Java in hopes of establishing .Net as an alternative. "The district court found that Microsoft's anticompetitive acts are tipping the market toward .Net," Patch said.

In its emergency request to the 4th Circuit, Microsoft asked the appeals court to place Motz's order on hold, calling it "extreme and unprecedented."

Last week, Sun argued in a legal brief that the appeals court should not intervene. "Microsoft's unsupported claim that its next shipping date for Windows may be adversely affected, absent a stay, is similarly unconvincing in light of the order's 120-day period for compliance," Sun said in a 25-page filing. "The order does not require Microsoft to ship the (Java Runtime Environment) in any product until June 4, two months after the proposed expedited hearing date."

[tracer]

They changed their mind from black to cream and two tbsp. sugar....

[Bush2000]

It's simple: Sun rolled the dice, Motz rubber-stamped their request, and they lost this round. There was simply no evidence that there would be irrevocable harm to Java if it weren't included in Windows. I mean, for chrissakes, .NET doesn't even ship with Windows. How can there be harm!?!?!?

[Bush2000]

ping

[Cicero]

Sun's conduct has been indefensible. We came *this* close to getting a Microsoft SP1a for WinXP on the MS Update site that would have included Sun Java in it, courtesy of a legal decision rather than a technical decision.

First Sun told MS that it couldn't use Java because they refused to license it to them.

Then when that backfired Sun said MS had to use Java whether they liked it or not.

No thanks. It's annoying enough that Sun blocked MS from updating its Virtual Machine. I used to follow the Sun Java betas closely, but I gave up on it. Even the outdated MSVM worked better, IMHO.

[HAL9000]

How can there be harm!?!?!?

It will be a nuisance for Windows users who won't be able to view web pages containing Java applets.

Microsoft customers are screwed again.

[HAL9000]

First Sun told MS that it couldn't use Java because they refused to license it to them.

My recollection is that Sun did license Java to Microsoft. Then Microsoft violated the license agreement by making unauthorized modifications to the Java language. Sun revoked the license for contract violations and the whole mess ended up in court.

[observer5]

It's the MS Scheister Mafia at work again!!!

[observer5]

Little do most of you people know how MS has destroyed the Internet, in oder to dominate, as they have the PC market.

[antaresequity]

Yea

Tell Scott McNeeley to suck an egg....

IBM will scoop up SUNW when it gets below 2.25 by June...Tender to 5.00

You heard it here first

[discostu]

Well why don't you tell us how this internet that we're all using right now has been destroyed by MS. Back up your accusations.

[Bush2000]

It will be a nuisance for Windows users who won't be able to view web pages containing Java applets. Microsoft customers are screwed again

Why are they screwed? They can download the Java plugin directly from Sun (http://java.sun.com/products/plugin/).

[Bush2000]

MS has destroyed the Internet

That would almost be funny if it weren't so nonsensical...

[Bush2000]

IBM will scoop up SUNW when it gets below 2.25 by June...Tender to 5.00

I dunno. It would be cheaper for IBM to simply let Sun burn money and rot away...

[eno_]

I agree with Bush2000? The Stanley Cup will be played in Hell this year!

It's Microsoft's product. Forcing them to include Sun's product is offensive to common sense. What next? Coke has to mix in some Pepsi syrup? I can just imagine some of the tortured logic in the filings.

[Bush2000]

The big losers here are Java programmers

I couldn't agree with you more. ;-p

[chilepepper]

I used to be a real SUN fan but was completely turned off by Solaris, which I found needlessly complicated. I was further turned off by Solaris documentation (lack of it) which I could see spinning Solaris off into its own little world as opposed to tracking the mainstream UNIX BSD evolution.

I will raise a cup to SUN, their stock did me well but I was lucky/shrewd/scared enough to sell it just off its peak. I worked for some other companies that were ultimately done in by Intel and the PC platform, and SUN lasted longer than most. The SUN is dead (or seems to be headed that way at least)! Long live UNIX, OpenBSD and Linux!

[Cicero]

I guess it's a matter of interpretation. Supposedly Java is open source, but Sun has always insisted on exerting monopoly control over it. MS modified Java because it didn't work very well on their platform. By changing it, it worked much faster and more smoothly. I understand the argument when MS did that it weakened Java as a cross-platform doohicky, but the problem was--and still is, IMHO--that Java is too clunky to be practical. Development has been painfully slow--slower than the changes in MS's platform, in fact. So it will never work very well in Windows as long as Sun has a lock on it.

[Incorrigible]

Pathetic!  Time to send McNealy another coffin!