Microsoft Corp., preparing to release the latest version of its Windows software Friday, expects to learn before then whether the Justice Department will file an expanded antitrust case against the company.
The new action would focus on Microsoft’s use of its dominance n personal-computer operating systems to propel itself into a controlling position on the Internet.
Specifically, the case likely will attack the structure of Windows 98, including its marriage with Internet browsing and its direct linkages with information providers under contract to Microsoft.
These practices have aroused antitrust views in the Justice Department.
The action would be far more wide-ranging than the current federal case against Microsoft. Justice sued the company in October for allegedly violating a 1995 consent decree prohibiting Microsoft from linking sales of many of its products to Windows 95.
