s planned release of Intuit (a manufacturer of a popular personal finance program) it also threatened to halt the release of Windows 95 (Microsoft's upgraded operating system). The head of the Antitrust Division, Bingaman, was reportedly concerned about the link between Windows 95 and the Microsoft Network (MSN), an Internet service provider intended to compete against America Online (AOL). Whenever a user started a Windows 95 system, an MSN icon appeared. Then one click of the mouse connected the user with the MSN service. That packaging, according to DOJ, gave MSN an unsporting edge over its online rivals. But a few more mouse clicks enabled any Windows 95 user to bring up an AOL icon, which would appear automatically thereafter, at the same time as the MSN icon. Satisfied with its discovery that MSN's edge could be neutralized, the Antitrust Division abandoned its threat to block Windows 95. In result, MSN now loses an estimated $200 million annually providing service to fewer than 3 million customers. On the other hand, AOL, has 9 million subscribers and will add nearly 3 million more when it acquires Compuserve's consumer business. Although rivals complained that bundling MSN software with Windows 95 would swamp competition, Microsoft's proved them wrong because Microsoft made lesser money then AOL. Whatever competitive advantage Microsoft may have in the sale of operating systems, the company has been ineffective in maintaining that advantage. Consumers, simply, refuse to buy a product they do not like. However, the DOJ didn't stop pursuing Microsoft. For the Antitrust Division, now headed by Joel Klein, has raised the issue yet again, this time objecting that Windows 95 and Internet Explorer are two separate products, not one integrated product. Is the Internet Explorer a "separate" product, as Klein claims? Or are the two products "integrated," as Microsoft claims? Because DOJ denies that Windows 95 and Internet Explorer are "in...
