Microsoft's Engstrom holds his own in court

Eric Engstrom, who heads Microsoft's multimedia team and dealt directly with Apple Computer during the QuickTime episode, answered questions directly and defended his and his company's actions. In the process, he became the first executive from Microsoft to come away relatively unscratched after a day on the stand.

And the charge by Apple executive Avie Tevanian that Microsoft asked it to kill QuickTime?

"Completely unfounded," Engstrom said. "Our company would never do anything like that."

In fact, Engstrom says, Apple Computer never provided the information they needed to fix the problem. Tevanian's allegations affected him personally, he testified.

Once Engstrom was finished, Microsoft senior VP Joachim Kempin, who makes Windows licensing deals with PC makers, took the stand. Kempin's cross-examination dealt mostly with deals with Compaq and Gateway and the types of things these companies can do to modify the Windows desktop and boot-up experience. Kempin will take the stand again on Thursday