US criticism of Microsoft ruling is 'unacceptable'

A US official’s criticism of a European Union court ruling dismissing Microsoft’s monopoly abuse appeal was “totally unacceptable,” EU antitrust chief Neelie Kroes said today.

Kroes said it was wrong for a representative of the US administration to criticise “an independent court of law outside its jurisdiction.”

“The European Commission does not pass judgment on rulings by US courts and we expect the same degree of respect from US authorities on rulings by EU courts,” she said. “It is absolutely not done.”

On Monday US Department of Justice assistant attorney general for antitrust Thomas Barnett said the US had a particular interest in the EU’s Court of First Instance decision and was concerned that the legal standard it set had “the unfortunate consequence of harming consumers by chilling innovation and discouraging competition.”

Kroes said if parties directly involved in the case – Microsoft – wanted to contest the ruling it could appeal to the EU’s highest court, the European Court of Justice. It has two months to lodge a challenge.

She was keen earlier in the week to stress that EU regulators consult regularly with US authorities on antitrust cases – despite their sometimes different approaches – saying she would discuss the case with them when she visits the US later this month.

Monday’s court ruling affirmed the EU’s nine-year pursuit of Microsoft, rejecting the software maker’s appeal and strengthening the bloc’s hand as it pushes ahead with cases against other major technology companies.

It said the European Commission was correct in concluding that Microsoft used its dominance in desktop computers to muscle into server software and media players in the 1990s and upheld a record -£343m (€491m) fine imposed on the company in 2004 – the largest ever levied by EU regulators.

The EU started investigating Microsoft in the late 1990s with complaints from Microsoft’s US-based rivals – including Sun Microsystems and RealNetworks - about how the software giant used its presence on most desktop computers to elbow into new markets and block competitors. Microsoft Windows operating system runs as much as 95% of the world’s PCs.