Economics Expert Witness & Microsoft Lawsuit Decertification

A federal judge Thursday stripped class-action status from the "Vista Capable" lawsuit against Microsoft Corp. but will allow the plaintiffs to continue to sue the company separately. ComputerWorld.com reports: 

Not surprisingly, Microsoft applauded the news. "We're pleased that the court granted our motion to decertify the class, leaving only the claims of six individuals," said Microsoft spokesman David Bowermaster in an e-mail late Wednesday. "We look forward to presenting our case to the jury, should the plaintiffs elect to pursue their individual claims."

U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman said the plaintiffs' economics expert witness, University of Washington Dr. Keith Leffler, did not, or was unable to, come up with any data to support the price inflation theory. Leffler had estimated that Microsoft would have to come up with as much as $8.5 billion to settle accounts with the customers affected by its 2006 "Vista Capable" marketing program.