Kroes hits back at US criticism
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US lawmakers should stick to US law Competition Commissioner 'Steely' Neelie Kroes hit back at US politicians who criticised this week's verdict from the Court of First Instance.â¦
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(InfoWorld) - European Commissioner for competition Neelie Kroes Tuesday denied she is conducting a personal vendetta against Microsoft. Her comments came in response to what she called âa coordinated campaignâ by Microsoft against Europeâs top antitrust regulator. âFar from pursuing a vendetta against Microsoft, the Commissionâs actions are guided by the desire to create the most innovation-friendly business climate in Europe to the ultimate benefit of European consumers,â Kroes wrote in a letter in Tuesdayâs Financial Times. Earlier this month Microsoft warned that ongoing antitrust problems in Europe mayÂ delay the European launch of Windows Vista, the new version of the companyâs flagship operating system. It accused the Commission of not giving it sufficiently clear guidance on whether Vista would pass muster under European antitrust law. It also presented research it had commissioned that showed that hundreds of thousands ofÂ jobs in the European IT industry were at stakeÂ if Vistaâs launch in the region was delayed. âThere appears to be a co-ordinated campaign to portray the Commission in a negative light,â Kroes wrote. âFor example, I have seen it suggested that the Commission may seek toÂ prevent Microsoft from improving the securityÂ of its operating system. This is categorically not the case,â she wrote. The Commission has been giving feedback to Microsoft since the spring about how to avoid similar antitrust problems with Vista that it experienced with its predecessor, Windows XP. The Commission warned Microsoft that its plan to equip Vista with its own security software may amount to bundling and it urged the software company not to shut out rivals in the security software market. In 2004 the Commission found Microsoft guilty of shutting out rivals in the media player software market by bundling its Media Player with Windows. The company was also guilty of abusing its position in the workgroup server OS market. Microsoft was fined almost â¬500 million ($633 million) and was required to release a version of Windows without Media Player. In addition, Microsoft needed to make its server products better interoperate with competitors' offerings. Earlier this year it wasÂ fined an additional â¬280.5 millionÂ for failing to reveal details about the workings of Windows, as it was ordered to in the 2004 ruling. Microsoft has now submitted the information, which the Commission believes is necessary for restoring competition in the market for server operating systems. The Commission will decide in the coming months whether the information is sufficient. Meanwhile, the European Court of First Instance in Luxembourg is considering an appeal of the 2004 antitrust ruling lodged by Microsoft. The Court follows no strict timeframe. Most observers expect a ruling by next summer.ADVERTISEMENTMAKE SOA REAL WITH IBM WEBSPHERE PODCASTStreamline processes and maximize efficiency within a proven service oriented architecture. Take back control of your business processes with IBM WebSphere.
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Five months after answering those who questioned his resolve with a one-shot victory at the Masters, Phil Mickelson is facing the critics once again this week at the Ryder Cup at Oakland Hills.
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Germany coach Juergen Klinsmann has been surprised at the amount of criticism his recent decisions have provoked. Klinsmann was called a &quot;cold-blooded killer&quot; by
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Safe Harbor - safe from storm? The Belgian firm stuck in the middle of a transatlantic spat over the US infringement of civil liberties by the agents of its war on terror is throwing its lot in with the Americans.â¦
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EU antitrust chief Neelie Kroes on   Tuesday rejected an accusation she was pursuing a vendetta   against U.S. software giant Microsoft Corp. MSFT.O and   suspected a "coordinated campaign" to discredit her agency.
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A group of former US diplomats scolded some colleagues for violating the US foreign service's traditional political neutrality by condemning President George W. Bush's foreign policy.
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Business & money: Mounting US crackdown on foreign companies doing business with Iran provoke opposition in Europe.
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GERMANY coach Juergen Klinsmann has expressed his surprise at the amount of criticism his recent decisions have provoked. Klinsmann was labelled a &quot;cold-blooded killer&quot; by former captain Lothar Matthaeus for
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The Duke of York criticises the US administration, saying it should have listened to the UK over Iraq.
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Dutch Foreign Minister Bernard Bot has been trying to defuse a row over a European Union statement on Russia&#39;s handling of the Beslan hostage crisis.
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That was quite a hornets&#39; nest stirred up by US-based Englishman Paul Casey, who remarked that in the Ryder Cup context he &quot;properly hated&quot; Americans.
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(InfoWorld) - European Union Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes has slammed comments from the U.S. Department of Justice about Monday's European courtÂ ruling on an antitrust judgment against Microsoft. [ Video:Â Commissioner talks Microsoft antitrust appealÂ | Plus:Â EC wins appeal, but MS dominates marketÂ |Â Ruling renews hope for developersÂ |Â With MS ruling, a precedent for IT in EuropeÂ ] Kroes described the criticism of the ruling as "totally unacceptable" during a news conference in Brussels on Wednesday. The DOJ's Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust, Thomas Barnett, criticized the ruling sharply on Monday, warning that it could "have the unfortunate consequence of harming consumers by chilling innovation and discouraging competition." Kroes fired back: "I think it's totally unacceptable [that a representative of the U.S. government] should criticize an independent court's decision. The Commission doesn't pass judgement on rulings in U.S. courts. We expect the same respect," she said. On Monday the Court of First Instance, Europe's second-highest court, dismissed an appeal by Microsoft against the Commission's 2004 antitrust ruling against the company. The DOJ statement added: "In the United States, anti-trust laws are enforced to protect consumers by protecting competition, not competitors". Barring "demonstrable consumer harm, all companies, including dominant firms, are encouraged to compete vigorously." Kroes, who plans to visit Washington D.C. in the coming weeks, said that if Microsoft is unhappy with the court ruling it should appeal it to Europe's top court, the Court of Justice.
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WASHINGTON - John Kerry yesterday lashed back at charges that he exaggerated his Vietnam war record, accusing President George W. Bush of using an anti-Kerry group to level the claims because &quot;he wants them to do his dirty work.&quot; ...
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International resentment of the United States has spilled over to include bad feelings for the American people, too - at least in three European countries that opposed US policies in Iraq.
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The world&#39;s chief climate scientist disputed yesterday the US government&#39;s contention that cutbacks in carbon-dioxide emissions are not warranted to slow global warming.
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Jim Furyk hit out at suggestions that   the American team did not take the Ryder Cup seriously enough   on Wednesday but labeled their performance "horrendous."