Microsoft News Tracker

Grant Gross at Infoworld:

A U.S. district court judge monitoring Microsoft Corp.’s antitrust settlement with the U.S. government scolded company lawyers Wednesday because the company recently announced a lengthy delay in a project to improve technical documentation for its communications protocols.

Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, questioned why Microsoft has pushed back the completion date of one of two technical documentation projects announced in February from early 2006 to October 2006 or later. The two projects were intended to help Microsoft comply with the judge’s order to share its proprietary communications protocols, part of the settlement Kollar-Kotelly approved in late 2002.

“If it’s an issue of resources, then put them in,” Kollar-Kotelly told Microsoft lawyers during an antitrust compliance hearing. “Do what it takes to get it done.”
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Kollar-Kotelly spend most of the time hearing about delays in the technical documentation project. The judge ordered Microsoft to license its communication protocols to other IT vendors as part of the November 2002 antitrust settlement between the company and the U.S. government. The quality of the technical documentation for those protocols is one of the major remaining issues in the settlement, with one lawyer for the plaintiffs complaining Wednesday that the company hasn’t lived up to the agreement.

There will be another hearing on November 30 to monitor progress. She also had a few words about the exclusive music contracts revealed last week.

Today in Israel:

Microsoft on Wednesday signed a deal with Israel’s government to establish a joint program to give Israeli start-ups financial and technological support from the U.S. software giant.

Microsoft forged the deal with Israel’s Office of the Chief Scientist during Chairman Bill Gates’ first ever visit to Israel. Gate later will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

Microsoft will provide $1.4 million in funds over three years.

Companies chosen to work with Microsoft will initially receive technical consultation on Microsoft products, early exposure on future Microsoft software, technical advice on its open platform and consulting advice on intellectual property protection, Microsoft said in a statement.

In later stages, Israeli businesses cooperating with Microsoft would receive joint marketing and public relations as well as business development and additional exposure to international markets.

On Monday in France:

Microsoft plans to give a helping hand to French start-ups that want to develop software using its technology. The company is finalizing partnerships with 15 European venture capital firms to provide technical, sales and marketing support to 25 software start-ups in which they have invested, it announced Monday.

The venture capital firms are looking to Microsoft to support the software firms in which they have invested, to make them better-known in France and abroad, it said.

On Monday afternoon, Microsoft Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates is scheduled to discuss the future of software innovation in France with French IT executives at an event hosted by the French Minister of Industry, François Loos.
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Through a technology center in Paris, Microsoft plans to help developers in France test their applications in different hardware and software environments, and will give them access to other technical resources to speed up their work. In addition, it will promote their activities through its own marketing events, it said Monday.

The start-ups will also be encouraged to support one another, through a private newsgroup moderated by engineers from Microsoft’s French software support group.

Microsoft has already identified eight start-ups which will benefit from the project: Aliantiz SARL, Excentive, Lexifi SAS, Prim’X Technologies SA, Reportive, Soorce SA, Total Immersion SA and Voluntis SA. The other 17 will be selected from the investments of the venture-capital partners.

Tomorrow, Microsoft will announce earnings for their fiscal 1Q2006 and Amanda Cantrell at CNN/Money has a preview, Microsoft: A window to 2006:

Early 2006 could bring a long-awaited renaissance for Microsoft — and not a moment too soon for many investors.

But anyone looking for a happy surprise when the world’s biggest software maker reports results Thursday may have to wait.

The Redmond, Wash.-based software company has wrestled with a stagnant stock price for years, but a round of new products due in early 2006 may fix that. In the meantime, however, it’s unlikely that customers will rush to buy software that they know will soon get a major upgrade.

The new products are, for the most part, arriving in late 2005 and then in 2H2006 and it’s rather more complicated than just customers delaying purchases, but you get the idea.

When it reported results last quarter, Microsoft projected first-quarter revenue between $9.7 billion to $9.8 billion; at the time, Wall Street had been expecting revenue of $9.9 billion.

“I think they will exceed guidance,” said Andrew Seibert, senior portfolio manager for S&T Wealth Management, a $1.2 billion, Pittsburgh-based money management firm that owns shares of Microsoft. “Microsoft and Intel have made a science out of lowering expectations so that people don’t expect them to blow the roof off things.”

We’ll find out tomorrow.

Kelly Olsen of the AP on Yahoo!:

South Korea’s antitrust watchdog said Wednesday it won’t drop its investigation into allegations Microsoft Corp. engaged in unfair trade practices even if the U.S. software giant reaches an accord with the South Korean company that first brought the complaint.

Daum Communications Corp., a South Korean Internet portal, filed a complaint to the country’s Fair Trade Commission in 2001 alleging that Microsoft violated trade rules by tying its instant messenger software to Windows.

The Seoul Economic Daily said Wednesday that Microsoft and Daum Communications are trying to work out a settlement and that industry expectations for one are high.

Nate Mook at BetaNews:

Microsoft on Tuesday will issue a refreshed beta of Windows OneCare to testers, which brings a number of improvements to the PC protection and maintenance service. New features include the ability to backup to an external drive, scan incoming files from MSN Messenger and perform on-demand virus detection.

Neowin has more details.