For the European Commission to achieve the objectives it has set out in the case of anti-trust against Microsoft, prudence is needed in the way the process is conducted. The recommendation is from an American lawyer who was involved in a similarly contested case, which was under consideration in the United States seven years ago.
The official, quoted by C | Net but not identified, considers that the imposition of a fine, as the EC ended up doing, may not produce the desired effects. It penalizes the multinational’s business in Europe and depreciates the shareholder value of the company, but it does not necessarily lead to a more competitive policy, he warns.
«Sometimes the recurring procedures do not act in the best interest of the law», defends the lawyer, who considers the application of measures «tailored for the purpose», more similar to what was done in the United States.
The same jurist argues that in the United States the judicial solution to Microsoft’s anti-competitive policies worked and that the results are no longer visible because with the inauguration of the Bush administration the monitoring of measures ended up not being done.
It is recalled that the EC imposed a fine of one billion dollars on Microsoft to which a set of corrective measures were added. Both decisions have been appealed by Microsoft and have yet to be ruled by the court.
Related News:
2007-03-01 – EC threatens Microsoft again with penalties for non-compliance with anti-trust decision
