A federal judge on Monday dismissed a claim by five California cities and counties that Microsoft Corp., the world's largest software maker, had overcharged them for software. U.S. District Court Judge J. Frederick Motz in Baltimore, Maryland, granted Microsoft's motion to dismiss the lawsuit, saying that some of the plaintiffs were not allowed to sue because of their status as municipal corporations and that the statute of limitations had expired on several of the claims.
The plaintiffs, which included the City and County of San Francisco, city of Los Angeles and the counties of Santa Clara, San Mateo and Los Angeles, sued the Redmond, Washington-based software maker last August for violating antitrust and unfair competition laws in California. "Today's decision granting Microsoft's motion to dismiss is welcome news," Microsoft spokeswoman Stacy Drake said in a statement. "We look forward to continuing to work with California government agencies to help deliver technology solutions to their communities."
News source: eWeek
