Microsoft Ordered to Include Sun Java with Windows

In a preliminary injunction handed down Monday by U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz, Microsoft was ordered to carry Sun Microsystem's latest Java revision in Windows. Microsoft had dropped Java support in Windows XP, citing previous litigation from Sun, and made available an outdated Java release via Windows Update.

The injunction comes as part of a $1 billion private antitrust lawsuit filed by Sun against Microsoft last March.

"Competition is not only about winning the prize; its deeper value lies in giving all those who choose to compete an opportunity to demonstrate their worth," Motz wrote in his decision. "If .NET proves itself to be a better product than Java, it should — and will — predominate in the market."

"This decision is a huge victory for consumers who will have the best, latest Java technology on their PCs, and it is a victory for software developers who will write applications to run on those PCs," Sun said in a statement. "The decision helps ensure that current, compatible Java technology will be included on every consumer desktop and put an end to Microsoft's practice of fragmenting the Java platform."

Microsoft said it plans to immediately appeal the ruling.