A European Faceoff over Microsoft Vista
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| The EC shot back on Sept. 12, noting that Microsoft is "a near
| monopolist" whose inclusion of those features in their operating system
| might "foreclose existing competition" in certain software markets. The
| features in question include an anti-spam filter called Windows Defender
| and a data encryption technology called BitLocker planned for high-end
| versions of the operating system. Companies such as Symantec and McAfee now
| sell similar tools for Windows.
|
| CONSUMER OUTCRY. The Commission is also concerned about a file viewer
| called Metro that will be included in Vista. Metro can display documents
| created in the PDF format developed by Adobe Software, which could
| erode Adobe's market leadership in PDF creation tools.
|
| [...]
|
| The Commission, meanwhile, is holding its ground. The Brussels body ruled
| in March, 2004, that Microsoft had abused its monopoly market position
| and harmed competition when it bundled the Media Player software into
| Windows. Ever since, staff at the Commission's antitrust unit have been
| warning Microsoft that bundling yet more features into Vista would likely
| run afoul of the law.
|
| [...]
|
| GLOBAL IMPLICATIONS. Then there's the contrarian view offered by one
| analyst, who requested anonymity. He thinks that Microsoft may need to
| delay the worldwide delivery of Vista yet again--and will use the
| Europe situation as its excuse. Microsoft wouldn't comment on the
| Vista shipment schedule.
|
| One way or another, what happens over the next few weeks in the halls
| of Brussels will have an impact that goes far beyond Europe. It could
| take years to sort out, and PC users will get their hands on Vista
| long before the dust has settled. But get ready for a lot more
| legal wrangling.
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http://yahoo.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/sep2006/gb20060913_243817.htm
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