Microsoft Subpoenas Professor's Notes

Another Harvard professor has become embroiled in the federal government's anti-trust case against software giant Microsoft.

Microsoft lawyers have subpoenaed notes, recordings of interviews and correspondence used by David B. Yoffie, Starr professor of international business administration, and Michael A. Cusumano, a professor at MIT, to write a book.

The professors have denied Microsoft's request because research for the book--Competing on Internet Time: Lessons from Netscape and its Battle with Microsoft--was conducted under agreements of confidentiality.

Harvard officials said the University supports the professors' refusal because Microsoft's demand threatens academic research

"We are very willing to work with Microsoft and the federal court to verify the accuracy of anything that is in the book," Yoffie said yesterday. "However, to turn over all our tapes, transcripts and notes would violate the basic confidentiality understanding we had with [the people we interviewed]."

A Microsoft spokesperson said the material used to write the book could advance the company's case in the antitrust suit.

"There is information in the book that directly refutes the government's lawsuit," said Microsoft spokesperson Jim Cullinan. "We think this information is important to our case and our defense."

The book, to be published later this month, describes past business practices of the Microsoft competitor, Netscape Communications Corporation.

"The book is an in-depth analysis of Netscape, [including] its competitive strategy, development strategy and design strategy for software," Yoffie said.

Alex Huppe, Harvard's director of public affairs, said the University has sent its objections to Microsoft.

"Harvard's goal is to protect the integrity of academic research. [But] we are also aware that Microsoft needs the information to defend itself," he said.

Yoffie and Cusumano are awaiting a response from Microsoft on the objection. Cullinan said the information will be safe under a protective order of the court.

"We feel very confident that the protective order would satisfy the professor's concerns," he said.

Yoffie is not the first Harvard professor to become involved in the Microsoft lawsuit.

Professor of Law L. Lawrence Lessig is the special master in the anti-trust litigation against Microsoft. In January, Microsoft tried to have Lessig removed from the case, arguing that the professor had demonstrated bias against Microsoft in e-mail messages to Netscape executives.