ABOUT a fortnight ago we complained that Microsoft 'compensated' Wisconsin and also Mississippi using 'funny money', which means that it's not real money but merely discounts on future purchases of software, probably from Microsoft whose monopoly was acquired using the same crimes it was sued for in the first place. It's almost satirical.
“Free (libre) software needs no vouchers because it rarely has a cost of acquisition (i.e. it is commonly also gratis).”Granted, Microsoft has almost no production costs involved in duplication of software, so this is a mockery and hardly even a fine for well-documented criminal behaviour. This may actually serve as more of a reward than a punishment because it helps future spreading of Microsoft software. Free (libre) software needs no vouchers because it rarely has a cost of acquisition (i.e. it is commonly also gratis).
Another settlement has just been reached (this time in Arizona) and based on the descriptions, although they are not very specific, it seems likely that hardware -- not software -- will be paid for by Microsoft. The amount of money, however, is almost negligible, especially for a large area like Arizona. From Law 360:
A judge has granted preliminary approval of a Microsoft Corp. antitrust class action settlement that will see the software giant give government entities in Arizona $4.4 million to purchase new computer equipment.