Microsoft lost its appeal in its antitrust case in Europe!

Microsoft lost its appeal in its antitrust case in Europe!
Sep 19, 2007 00:17
ICEBERG Points: Join Date: Sep 10, 2007 Status: offline	Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Microsoft_loses_EU_anti-trust_case/articleshow/2378279.cms On September 17th, the European Court of First Instance, the EU's second highest tribunal backed the European Commission's 2004 record find of 497 million euros (690 million dollars) on Microsoft the software giant. Meanwhile, it also judeges Microsoft to sell a version of Windows PC without a media player already bundled in and to share technical information with rivals needed to make products that could function with Windows. In March 2004, the Commission ruled after a five-year probe that Microsoft had abused its share of the market for operating systems running personal computers thanks to its Windows programme. To Microsoft, it is a big blow. Some analysts say that if this verdict takes effect, Microsoft will suffer a big loss. You can imagine, the commission will adopt more severe mesures to investigate antitrust cases against Microsoft. However, Microsoft still has time to decide whether they will raise their appeal. How do you interpete the battle between EU and Microsoft?

Sep 19, 2007 00:17

ICEBERG
Points:
Join Date: Sep 10, 2007
Status: offline

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Microsoft_loses_EU_anti-trust_case/articleshow/2378279.cms

On September 17th, the European Court of First Instance, the EU's second highest tribunal backed the European Commission's 2004 record find of 497 million euros (690 million dollars) on Microsoft the software giant. Meanwhile, it also judeges Microsoft to sell a version of Windows PC without a media player already bundled in and to share technical information with rivals needed to make products that could function with Windows. In March 2004, the Commission ruled after a five-year probe that Microsoft had abused its share of the market for operating systems running personal computers thanks to its Windows programme.

To Microsoft, it is a big blow. Some analysts say that if this verdict takes effect, Microsoft will suffer a big loss. You can imagine, the commission will adopt more severe mesures to investigate antitrust cases against Microsoft. However, Microsoft still has time to decide whether they will raise their appeal. How do you interpete the battle between EU and Microsoft?

Sep 19, 2007 02:18

AL32
Points:
Join Date: Sep 11, 2007
Status: Offline

Hi Iceberg,

All I would say is "bravo" to the EU; it's about time [altough this battle has been going on for quite a while now] that someone hold thigh 'against' Micro$oft!!

Such a world monopoly on PCs operating system and for so long is just insane and not reasonable.
Windows is just so big and incorporating so many applications now (media player, firewall, spyware remover, games, tools and so on) that I wonder if one day there won't be any software sold seperatly. M$ is that big monster that kills all competitors by internally developping and incorporating everything that others make money with. Competitiom is always a good thing for the end user and I really hope that M$ will more and more have a hard time justifying its reprehensible actions.

I already once rose the question to my friends: with all the merging and aggressive acquisitions going on in the stock market, will a company like Micro$oft with all its money and undisputed power will eventually succeed at buying all competition in every single field of the economy? Will B. Gates or one of his successor one day become the supreme CEO or owner of the world economy? Will this person become the leader of all; a kind of god?

Well, I agree that my questioning is a bit extremist and philosophic, but I sure do hope that it is not happening and that more and more unions or countries will stand up and fight against such enormous monopolies. So once again, hurray for David who won that little battle against Golliath.

/ AL

Sep 20, 2007 03:14	#2
JIMMYB Points: Join Date: Feb 7, 2007 Status: Offline	Me too. Glad to hear this news. Any kind of monopoly should be punished and prohibited. Some other competitors have gone broke because of those monopolistic giants. This is not fair.

Post a Reply to: Microsoft lost its appeal in its antitrust case in Europe!