Justice delayed is just useless

So, Microsoft won't be split in two, it will just be "regulated".

That's not much use to anyone. But I suspect that Bill Gates may be popping down to the Redmond branch of Gap and buying a new pair of khaki trousers to celebrate.

Because Gates's Microsoft is not content with a virtual monopoly over desktop computing, (yes we know Apple makes computers too).

He has ambitions to control the whole of the digital world, from enterprise computing all the way through to mobile phones, internet access and digital media. And now nothing stands in his way.

It's good to have ambitions. Gates always justifies bullying his competitors out of business on the basis that it makes for a better customer experience.

If Gates can provide me with a better customer experience, I'll happily direct all my spending on technology to Gates's pocket. But I want to be the judge of that.

I don't want to find myself in a position where I have to use Microsoft products because there is no viable alternative, or because the Microsoft products that I already have won't work with any non-Microsoft products I might wish to buy.

As much as anything, healthy competition drives down prices.

Most people in the industry are ambivalent about Microsoft. They like the fact that there's an easy standard which everyone knows how to use and which works tolerably well.

But they resent the bully-boy tactics of the Redmond behemoth, they resent the fact that they have no real choice and they resent the hefty prices they have to pay.

The US regulators say they'll stand in the way of some of Gates's monopolistic projects. But they haven't got a chance.

The law moves at the speed of a very tired snail - by the time they make one decision, Gates will already be 64 moves ahead of them.

If they do manage to discipline Microsoft, it will probably just mean worse products for Microsoft users, and do their competitors no good at all.