Judge tosses private Microsoft suit

Microsoft has scored another win in its battle with a sea of private antitrust lawsuits filed against it. The company said that a state court in Missouri dismissed a suit, making it the 11th state to do so. The cases were filed in courts across the country on behalf of millions of purchasers of Microsoft products after it became clear the company was losing its battle against the Justice Department. However, Microsoft has won most attempts to get the state suits tossed out, mainly because of a law that prohibits people from suing a company for antitrust violations if they did not purchase a product from it directly. Just last month, a federal judge in Missouri threw out 20 suits. Still, several suits are moving forward in states that do not have indirect purchaser rules, including California.