Judge to approve Microsoft-California settlement
InfoWorld | at | by Mike
Software buyers and poor schools in California got closer on Tuesday to reaping the benefits of a $1.1 billion settlement that Microsoft agreed to in January, when a San Francisco Superior Court judge said he intends to give it preliminary approval. Judge Paul Alvarado said in a hearing Tuesday he was ready to preliminarily approve the settlement. However, the approval was held back because Microsoft and the plaintiffs, lawyers representing groups of California consumers, could not agree on the notices to computer users that are to appear in the media, in the mail and online.
Because they could not agree, Microsoft and the plaintiffs asked Judge Alvarado to decide on the public notice issue. Alvarado said he would do so "in the next few days." The judge also told Microsoft and the plaintiffs to come to an agreement on longer versions of the notice that will be mailed to software buyers and posted online.