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MS Asks for Help in EU Antitrust Case

By Ed Oswald, BetaNews

November 16, 2005, 12:07 PM

Press reports indicate that Microsoft recently asked the U.S. government and other tech companies for assistance in its antitrust case with the European Union.

The request centers on the divulging of certain trade secrets, which has been a sticking point in the settlement negotiations between the EU and Microsoft. The company argues that the EU's decision could have a detrimental effect on other U.S. companies regarding how trade secrets are handled.

Microsoft gave companies a list of suggested talking points, according to a copy of the letter obtained by the Financial Times.

One of the suggested arguments says companies should tell U.S. officials: "the European Commission's trade secrets decision will establish a precedent that could adversely impact the value of trade secrets which are substantial business assets for many US companies, including mine."

The EU Commission had previously demanded that Microsoft open up its Windows networking protocols to third parties, including open source companies. Redmond officials balked at the request, and appealed the ruling in September.

"Microsoft has filed an application for annulment with the Court of First Instance specifically concerning the issue of broad licenses in source code form of communications protocols which are based upon Microsoft's intellectual property," a Microsoft spokesperson said at the time.

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By Maxwolf

posted Nov 17, 2005 - 9:59 AM

The very idea sounds scary...Windows Networking and Open Source. Those two words do not go together, sorry about your luck but this will never happen.

Score: 0

By nanabem

edited Nov 17, 2005 - 6:41 AM

Economic illiteracy is still something of a wide spread plague, what corporations like MS are fighting for is limiting competition by enforcing proprietary protocols on consumers, this leads to monopoly and that is the real issue. MS is taking advantage of their market share to ‘bullet proof’ their position on future market, making it very difficult for every other system to interface with their own. The EU has a much stricter stance on monopolies than the US, I find it very hard to believe that the licensing and patenting of such things as GUI’s, menus, other interfaces would be allowed in the EU. If that were to be the case I think that MS would be torn apart by Apple (on GUI patenting). MS is doing a great job telling people they can’t use alternatives to their systems over compatibility, but hey maybe someday they’ll be the one racing for it.

Score: 0

By tipsyboy

posted Nov 16, 2005 - 3:30 PM

There are a lot of peoples and countries in this world, which have their own rules, regulations, laws and even ways of living being veerrry different from those of the USA's. Simply different.

There are even people in this world - loads of people - who think the American democracy, that the US governments have been and are trying to export to everybody else on this planet, not to be the finest one of political structures, to say the least.

So - this is again about war. This one being a commercial, trade and patent licencing war.

There are millions of people in the E.U. who are completely against any patent licencing for software.

This whole problem is not about MS.

This is the problem of the global domination of corporations, that are granted the rights of a human being in their trading and business ways, but don't care about any human rights at all.

Anyone who tries to grab this onto a level of patriotism, simply shows that he has been successfully being PRed by those corporations, who not only do business, but in doing business are owning and controlling more than trade possessions. This has been proved throughout the world by many researchers. Just search for it on the internet.

Here is one as a starting point:

http://www.zmag.org/weluser.htm

Score: 0

By PC_Tool

posted Nov 16, 2005 - 3:02 PM

Can't wait for MS to take the same stance with the EU it used to threaten Korea.

Don't like our products? Fine, you can't use them.

Heh.... Bill Gates playing the 3 yr-old.

Gotta love it.

Score: 0

By bourgeoisdude

edited Nov 16, 2005 - 1:36 PM

EU took the demands too far with this request. MS doesn't HAVE to reveal that information, EU is demanding this strictly from Microsoft, and there is no law or regulation stating that any other company has to do this. I agree with MS on this one.

Score: 0

By PC_Tool

posted Nov 16, 2005 - 2:58 PM

If they want to do business in the EU, then by all means, they DO have to.

That's the whole point of this battle, here.

Personally, I feel MS shouldn't kowtow to the EU on this point. But it *will* cost them, perhaps dearly.

Score: 0

By bourgeoisdude

posted Nov 16, 2005 - 3:32 PM

Do you know what "trade secrets...[that] will establish a precedent that could adversely impact the value of trade secrets which are substantial business assets"? Microsoft knows something we don't, and apparently they have reason enough to fight it.

"If they want to do business in the EU, then by all means, they DO have to."

Correct. I was saying that there is no regulation requiring all software companies to do this--EU forced this solely on Microsoft. Why? Is this punishment for being an illegal monopoly, or is it supposed to actually help consumers?

Score: 0

By fewt

posted Nov 16, 2005 - 3:56 PM

"Microsoft knows something we don't"

Sure, it's really gonna hit home when their stock tumbles over it. No one is asking them to divulge trade secrets. The whole trade secrets argument is garbage, Microsoft decided to charge for access to code and the EU said no. If Microsoft was concerned about trade secrets they wouldn't have opened access for ANY price. If they open access to *SOME* code (namely, driver interfaces, protocols, and APIs) then all the other OSs on the planet would have the chance to compete and MSFT's stock would tumble because for once in the last 20 years competing for the desktop would be a viable business model. This scares the crap out of them because Linux and OSX/x86 would become viable virtually overnight. (Well, once enough code was written to make them all compatible).

;-)

Score: 0

By PC_Tool

edited Nov 16, 2005 - 3:58 PM

As I read it? Punishment.

Whether MS knows something we don't or not?

Do I really care?

I don't think they'll give up theri code, and I don't expect them to. But I also don't expect the EU to just let it slide when they've already taken it this far.

The EU might be taking it too far, but it's their right to do so. If they want to tell certain companies that in order to operate within their borders, or to sell product within their borders that they must do this or that specific thing, then they can go ahead and do that.

It'll bite 'em, if they do...but they can do it.

Score: 0

By fewt

posted Nov 16, 2005 - 1:42 PM

Actually, if they want to do business in the EU then the EU can make them do whatever they want. That's why they are asking for help.

Honestly, it needs to happen. Sure they should lighten up a bit on some things, but those are the breaks.

Score: 0

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