Microsoft settles Novell lawsuit

WASHINGTON — Software giant Microsoft Corp. opened its wallet again Monday to clear more of its courtroom problems, paying $536 million to rival Novell Inc. and an undisclosed smaller amount to a trade group that had backed antitrust complaints by the U.S. government and the European Union.

Novell, a bitter, decades-long rival of Microsoft, said despite the huge payoff it intends to file an antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft this week over damage a decade ago to its once-popular WordPerfect business software.

The payments announced Monday, however, were enough to persuade both Novell and the Washington-based Computer and Communications Industry Association to pull out of the legal case against Microsoft in the European Union, which has determined Microsoft abused its industry dominance and fined it $600 million. A crucial ruling on sanctions against Microsoft is expected as early as this month.

Microsoft previously spent $2.4 billion settling antitrust and other claims by AOL Time Warner Inc. and Sun Microsystems Inc., both significant supporters of the European case. But even billions in payments won’t put more than a dent in Microsoft’s staggering cash reserves of about $64.4 billion.

Novell said the $536 million agreement resolves antitrust claims involving the Netware operating system for connecting computers across networks, which competes with Microsoft’s dominant Windows software. Joseph A. LaSala Jr., Novell’s general counsel, called it a significant settlement.

The company’s shareholder meeting was set for today.

Microsoft, one of the most widely held securities, predicted Monday in financial disclosure documents that it still could face up to $950 million in exposure for remaining antitrust claims, including the court cases expected or already filed by Novell and RealNetworks Inc.