Microsoft could face new EU antitrust case

The European Commission may bring a new competition case against Microsoft after the EU executive received fresh complaints about the U.S. software giant, the EU competition commissioner said in a newspaper interview on Tuesday.

Neelie Kroes told the International Herald Tribune she would not wait for the outcome of an appeal by Microsoft before considering more action against the U.S. firm.  "We have had informal complaints, and we are using our time now to look at them.  We're not going to wait and do nothing," Kroes told the newspaper.

A Commission spokesman, however, denied that Brussels had any plans at the moment to file another suit against Microsoft, although he admitted it had received new complaints.

Microsoft was ordered last year to change the way it sells its software in Europe, and the company has appealed against the decision. (MSNBC is a Microsoft - NBC joint venture.)

Kroes said the new, informal complaints were similar to the previous ones and focused on the bundling of existing and future applications.

The newspaper quoted a lawyer as saying the latest complaints centered on Microsoft's Office suite of software applications, including Microsoft Word and Outlook, the e-mail program.

Jonathan Todd, spokesman for Kroes, said there were no plans currently for a new case against Microsoft.  "The European Commission is not intending at the moment to open a new case against Microsoft.  The Commission is, however, determined to ensure the proper application of the March 2004 decision and in particular the remedies imposed by that decision," Todd told Reuters.

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"We have received some informal complaints about Microsoft.  But the Commission cannot give any details concerning the subject of these complaints," he added.

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Earlier this month Microsoft filed a new lawsuit against the European Commission, the latest move in its long-running battle against antitrust sanctions imposed by the Commission for abuse of its dominant Windows software.

In March 2004, the Commission found Microsoft abused dominance of the Windows operating system so it could damage rival makers of work-group servers and media players.

Microsoft paid a $621 million fine and issued remedies on the two issues, but nearly one and a half years later those sanctions have yet to bite.