U.S. 'lobbied' the EC over Microsoft fine
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European Commissioner Neelie Kroes revealed that U.S. Embassy pressured her over the Microsoft antitrust case.
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He was vilified in U.S. industry and government circles for blocking the merger of General Electric Co. and Honeywell International Inc. in 2001 after the Justice Department had approved it. And when the European Union directorate he heads ordered Microsoft Corp. to remove a key feature from its Windows operating system, the U.S. antitrust community convulsed again.
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Like it said it would... Microsoft confirmed today that it will appeal the second part of the fine imposed on it by the European Competition Commission.â¦
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The European Commission warned  Microsoft on Thursday it faced further fines in its antitrust  case for seeking unreasonable prices from software makers for  interoperability information.
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BRUSSELS  - Risking another transatlantic tussle over Microsoft Corp., European Union antitrust regulators said Wednesday they were investigating whether the software giant's deal with media conglomerate Time Warner Inc. to develop anti-piracy software might lead to a new monopoly.
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Risking another trans-Atlantic tussle over Microsoft Corp., European Union antitrust regulators said Wednesday they were investigating whether the software giant&#39;s deal with media conglomerate Time Warner Inc.
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A European Union court rules on Monday  whether Microsoft abused its near-monopoly on computer  operating systems to push out rivals, in a protracted case that  has major implications on the EU's power to enforce antitrust  policy.
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The European Union sought consultations with the United States to determine if new US legislation abolishing contested corporate tax breaks is consistent with World Trade Organization regulations, an EU commission spokeswoman revealed.
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A ruling against the European Commission in the Microsoft antitrust case could affect its ability to regulate competition.
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BRUSSELS, Belgium  -- European Union regulators said Monday they were investigating whether software giant Microsoft Corp. used its market dominance to squeeze out office software and Internet browser rivals.
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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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A top European court has summoned all the parties involved in the European Union&#39;s antitrust case against Microsoft to a meeting in Luxembourg on Thursday after two prominent opponents of Microsoft withdrew from the proceedings, a court official has said.
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The European Commission said that Microsoft has met a key deadline in its antitrust standoff with the US software giant, staving off the threat of further fines.
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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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The European Commission warned Microsoft  on Thursday it faced further fines in its long-running antitrust battle with Brussels, this time for seeking unreasonable prices from software makers for vital data.
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(InfoWorld) - Four European Parliament members warned the European Commission that its actions toward Microsoft could endanger the competitiveness of European businesses by delaying the release of Vista, Microsoft's next operating system. In a strongly worded letter submitted Thursday to Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes, the legislators said Microsoft regards the E.U.'s regulatory actions as a "risk factor." Microsoft used the terminology in its annual report filed Aug. 25 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). "This effectively means that the Commission's actions are endangering the ability of European business to compete globally," the legislators wrote. The letter is signed by U.K. representatives Chris Heaton-Harris, Sharon Bowles and Peter Skinner, plus Michal Kaminski of Poland. Microsoft wrote in the SEC filing that its ongoing appeal of European Commission's March 2004 antitrust decision means there's uncertainty over the legal principles regarding product design in the European market. "These uncertainties could ... delay release dates for Windows or other products," the SEC filing read. Microsoft has provided copies of Vista to the Commission along with technical information, said spokesman Tom Brookes. The Commission, he said, has raised concerns regarding complaints by competitors. In March, the Commission sent a letter to Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer, saying it was concerned about certain functions in Vista and how compatible the OS would be with products from other software companies. European Commission representatives were not immediately available for comment regarding Thursday's letter. Brookes said Microsoft was unaware of the letter until this morning. Two of the legislators said their letter is based on information contained in the company's SEC filing. Heaton-Harris referred questions to Microsoft, regarding why the company thought the E.U. might cause a delay Vista's shipping date. Microsoft has said Vista will be ready for corporate customers in November and consumers in January. Bowles said she has participated in informal sessions where Commission members have acknowledged they are watching Microsoft's development of Vista closely. She said she had no specific information on what the Commission is currently doing, as few details are publicly released. However, the Commission's actions have prompted concern among small to medium-size businesses in Europe, worried that the E.U. could potentially delay Vista's release, putting them at a competitive disadvantage with the rest of the world, Bowles said. "That climate of uncertainty caused through competition policy and actions already taken ... are meaning that Europe is being deprived," Bowles said. Europe is in the middle of a 10-year plan, called the Lisbon Agenda, to increase the continent's competitiveness in technology. The legislators wrote that they are concerned the Commission's actions toward Microsoft are undermining Europe's moves to become a knowledge-driven economy. Microsoft and the Commission have locked horns over how the company is complying with the March 2004 antitrust decision. TheÂ Commission fined MicrosoftÂ â¬280.5 million ($357 million at the time) in July for failing to provide technical documentation for certain protocols used by its server products. The Commission required disclosure of the protocols to allow competitors to develop compatible products.Â Microsoft is appealing. Microsoft is also appealing the entire March 2004 decision, in which it was fined â¬497 million ($613 million at the time), before the European Court of First Instance in Luxembourg.
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The European Union's Competition Commission said today it might levy fines of $4 million a day against Microsoft amid concerns that the company is overcharging for the information rivals need to make their products work smoothly with Windows.