Kiss Netscape goodbye
WinInfo | at | by Mike
If you had any doubts that Microsoft won the browser wars, we present Exhibit A, Microsoft's new $750 million settlement with Netscape parent company AOL Time Warner. Put simply, Microsoft will pay cash-strapped AOL $750 million to drop its antitrust lawsuit against the software giant, while promising to provide AOL with early access to upcoming Windows versions. What Microsoft gets in return is staggering. First, AOL will use Internet Explorer (IE), not its own Netscape/Mozilla technology, as the royalty-free basis for its online software for at least seven more years. Second, AOL and Microsoft will work to (finally) integrate their currently incompatible instant messaging products, though no timetable was set. Third, AOL will license Microsoft's Windows Digital Media formats and Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology for securely delivering audio and video technology over the Internet through the AOL online service. If you're wondering where this leaves employees of the former Netscape, you're not alone: Until recently, AOL had been talking up using Netscape technology in a variety of client software types. These plans now appear to be as dead as Netscape's market share.