CCIA intervenes in Microsoft wrangle

The US Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) has thrown its weight behind attempts by the Department of Justice (DoJ) to penalise Microsoft.

Ed Black, CCIA president, called for action to be taken against the vendor.

'As an advocate for the industry, we believe it is in the best interests of competition, consumer choice and the future of the internet that Microsoft be prohibited from making these restrictive and anti-competitive licensing agreements with manufacturers,' he said.

Black pointed out that the CCIA has taken similar action against other suppliers in the past, citing IBM and AT&T.

'CCIA agrees with the DoJ that by forcing the IT browser to be combined with its dominant Windows operating system, Microsoft could unfairly undermine competition,' he added.

He said: 'The action requested by the Department of Justice will allow PC manufacturers to choose freely between competing internet browsers, thereby establishing a more level playing field.'