efficiency, productivity, and interconnectedness. Microsoft has been recognized as one of the primary companies responsible for introducing personal computing and software to consumers and ultimately launching America into the information age. Personal computing has become

ubiquitous and a necessity in maintaining effective communication. Since the introduction of Windows in 1985, Microsoft has become an industry giant in the software and computing industry. However, throughout most of its recent history Microsoft has been subject to continual government investigation; an inquiry that ultimately led to the United States’ suit against Microsoft for violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890.

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) and 20 other states filed an antitrust lawsuit against the Microsoft Corporation in 1998. The 20 states were New York, California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin an

Although the Microsoft case in its current form officially began in 1996, Microsoft has been under the scrutiny of the federal government since 1990. At that time, the Federal Trade Commission launched an investigation into Microsoft’s pricing policies and its possible impact on stifling competition. In addition, the FTC was assessing the creation of hidden codes in Microsoft’s operating system that were intended to hamper the activities of Microsoft’s competitors. No action was taken again Microsoft by the FTC and eventually resulted in a deadlock in 1993 when the FTC decided to drop the case. At the same time, the Department of Justices announced that it was taking over the FTC’s investigation of Microsoft. In the early nineties, Microsoft perceived the government’s inquiry into the company’s activities as primarily instigated by Microsoft’s competitors in Silicon Valley. Bill Gates believed that the legal scrutiny by the government into Microsoft’s activities was unjustified and an inappropriate intrusion harming Microsoft’s consumers and stockholders. After continued inquiry into Microsoft’s practices, Microsoft signed a consent decree in July of 1994 that required Microsoft to change the length of certain licensing and contract agreements as well as alter its method of collecting royalties from manufacturers of personal computers that use Microsoft's products. The following year the Department of Justice successfully blocked Microsoft’s attempts to acquire Intuit and their Quicken finance program. Later that year in August Microsoft launched Windows 95 without interruption

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