Microsoft Meets EU Antitrust Deadline 65
An anonymous reader writes to mention a News.com article, which reports on Microsoft's attempt to meet the EU's requirements in their ongoing antitrust case. The updated documents that Microsoft has delivered, they hope, will put off the leveling of a several-millions-of-dollars-a-day fine against the OS maker. Whether or not the documents have accomplished that task will not be known for several months yet. From the article: "The commission set a deadline of July but delayed it until a court proceeding finished in December, 2004. In July, 2006, the commission fined Microsoft $357.3 million for dragging its feet, on top of a fine of almost $646 million in 2004 for its initial violation. In a statement calling the submission of documents a 'milestone,' Microsoft said it had completed the review and editing of some 100 documents, which number 8,500 pages."
Fluff (Score:1, Insightful)
Just maybe.
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Common sense tells me that after all this time and bickering they should have gotten it right by now. Unfortunatly, my experience tells me that my common sense doesn't work very well around Microsoft.
Bloated software = Worthless documentation (Score:2)
What about putting the fine in escrow (Score:5, Interesting)
The updated documents that Microsoft has delivered, they hope, will put off the leveling of a several-millions-of-dollars-a-day fine against the OS maker. Whether or not the documents have accomplished that task will not be known for several months yet.
Being that they have already dragged their feet for years on this, they should be required to pay the fine (or at least a percentage of it) into escrow (which can bear interest for the benefit of the EU citizenry). Once the documentation is judged to have met the requirements of the EU regulators, the money can be returned.
Not sure if it would be possible, but I think it would help dissuade MS from future delay tactics.
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Simply log into the escrow service we suggested (Which we have already used and it's very secure and stuff).
We will need a 'processing fee' from you to release the funds.
We are also willing to throw in an Xbox 360 as a token of good will.
Love from Microsoft
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If the fine was X dollars to be paid on Y date and It ends up in escrow on that date pending the outcome of a review of obligations wich might negate the fine, then if it was found the obligations were never intented to be satisfied but rather a stalling tactic for whatever reason, then the interest from the money in question should goto the person who should have had control of it in the first place (the one doing the fineing) and not the person(s) who had no intent to hold to thier oblgati
Any existing fine... (Score:2, Interesting)
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It will be released wit a non discriminatory license, that a court will review. That means that you'll probably have to pay to get the specs, but the same amount of everybody else.
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in other news (Score:4, Funny)
Re:in other news (Score:4, Interesting)
Don't the editors and Taco talk to each other?
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BMO
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Re:in other news (Score:4, Funny)
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Gasp! (Score:2, Funny)
The real plan (Score:5, Funny)
Moo Ha Ha
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Moo Ha Ha
Happy cow?
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No idea who Mr. U is but if he thinks Linu can be easily controlled he forgot about a funny little thing called the GPL.
And it's not like the government had any control over Windows.
Some new thing, I think SP2 had something in it saying that Microsoft could disable your version Windows when
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Do you think they'll put politicians in front of computers and tell them to write code?
I've used Linux as it is now and it completely and utterly sucks. There was almost no thought put into ease of use or easy user understandability.
Or maybe you need to get a brain and try reading the manuals that come with many distros. No OS is perfectly intuitive, Windows only manages to g
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Thanks
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expensive pages... (Score:4, Interesting)
Tm
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Stop right there!
When Microsoft lawyers write to the EU (likely to obscure their real intentions) they use *much* bigger words.
That explains also why big words are by definition (like lawyers) very expensive.
What do the documents cover? (Score:2)
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We need MS watch committees. (Score:2)
In Capitalist West, Microsoft emails new EU Antitrust laws to you!
But as a dissident or competitor you know how it will end.
Shouldn't it be "Second Deadline"!? (Score:2)
Well, there were two fines already: one for antitrust violations and another for failure to comply. Second one was also deadline. IOW, the article should be titled "Microsoft Meets Second EU Antitrust Deadline."
And I suspect that is not last dead line M$ is going to push up to its limit. Because, as of now, if there is something wrong with submitted documents, M$ wouldn't have time to correct raised issues and would breach the deadline.
waiting until the last day .. (Score:2)
By which time Vista will be in the market, making it difficult to recall if MS is found to be still in breech of the ruling.
It's the other way around (Score:2)
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If this were the case, there would have to be some European-based alternatives to Microsoft software that had to catch up.
Perhaps you could tell us what these are?
Had to wait for the Novell Deal (Score:1)
Microsoft has complied with all of the EC decision except the interoperability documentation [boycottnovell.com], one of the squabbles is what the 'license terms' should be for the interface info - MS doesnt want it to be free, and heaven forbid GPL-friendly.
Novell has now validated MS claim [boycottnovell.com] that the interface info is indeed license worthy, notice they are paying royalties, so now MS can say to the EU that Novell found their license terms "Reasonable and Non Discriminatory". The Novell deal will undermine the EC ruling, and
I'm not a lawyer but..... (Score:2)
I thought you weren't suppose to "edit" documents before you submitted them to the courts. Isn't this called evidence tampering?
Intellectual Property... (Score:1)
Do drug makers have to release their formulae to their competitors to release competing (or even complimentary) products?
Does Boeing send their engineering specifications to Airbus? Does Ford have to send the documentation on their latest engine design to General Motors or Volkswagen?
Microsoft is the "American Dream" -- it has produced
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