US Government investigates break up of Gates' empire

Microsoft could be split up if the DOJ wins its anti-trust case.

US Government lawyers announced last week that they are examining a range of options including splitting Microsoft in two so that one company will sell operating systems and the other applications.

The court has approached several Wall Street business consultancies to evaluate the break-up options. The prosecution is expected to present its closing arguments this week, with a preliminary judgement in a month's time.

The Computer Services and Software Association welcomed the plan, saying that breaking up Microsoft would make it easier for other software companies to compete.

However, the supplier organisation's executive director, Tony Lewis, said the industry could face other problems: "Microsoft would be weakened but de facto standards in the industry would be weakened too."