In a move that may chill America Online’s warm embrace of
Internet content, a subsidiary of News Corp. has filed a lawsuit
charging the online giant with monopolistic business practices
and anti-competitive behavior.  The suit, filed in U.S. District
Court in Alexandria, Va., by Virginia-based Kesmai Corp., a
major online game developer and provider, alleges that AOL,
which purchased and installed an online gaming division of its
own in 1995, is seeking to force other game providers to either
provide their content exclusively or under prohibitive terms.
Considering that, after its acquisition last month of former
archrival CompuServe, AOL will control nearly 80% of the online
marketplace, Kesmai alleges other providers will feel they have
no recourse but to bend to the service’s will.  Additionally,
the suit alleges that outside content providers will be forced
to scrub their own branding of games in favor of AOL’s own
WorldPlay marque, to the detriment of outside providers’ ability
to market their content e