Ralph Nader

P.O. Box 19312

Washington, D.C. 20036

October 2, 1997

Vice President Albert Gore

The White House

Washington, D.C.

Dear Vice President Gore:

The business impact Microsoft has on its competitors and on innovation are topics worthy of study and debate. I am writing to invite you to participate in a conference Appraising Microsoft and Its Global Strategy, which will be held November 13 & 14, 1997, at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C. Unlike the closed 100 executives gathering by Microsoft near Seattle that you flew to address, this conference is open and close to your office. Bill Gates has also been invited to make a presentation.

Conference participants include Scott McNealy of Sun Microsystems, Roberta Katz of Netscape Communications and Gary Reback of Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati among others. The primary goal of this conference is to bring together representatives from a variety of industries and academic backgrounds to discuss Microsoft's impact on society.

Please accept this invitation to speak on the government's role in ensuring fair, open and democratic practices on the information superhighway. Enclosed is a list of confirmed participants and topics to be discussed.

Sincerely,

Ralph Nader