EU Fines Microsoft $1.4 Billion

News has just come out that the European Union has just landed Microsoft  with a $1.35 billion (899 million Euro) fine for failing to comply with their 2004 order to suply interoperability data for its products to competitors.  This brings the total fine  to $2.5 billion.

Last time this happened, there was a lot of anger from some Americans, that their successful American company was being pushed around by the European economic watch dog.  Needless to say, the same anger is going to be ignited again now.  The obvious answer to that, is that while Microsoft is an ‘American’ company, they do have a global footprint, and they do effect all of us non-Americans too.

That got me thinking though.  What is there to stop a nation, less friendly to the United States, from deciding that $1.4 billion would be a nice little pay day for them and deciding to fine Microsoft under their own local laws for a similar amount?  Nothing right? The only caveat would be that they would have to be a sufficiently large market for Microsoft to not simply pull their products from that region entirely.  The idea of that being possible concerns me a little bit.

Please note, I am not at all trying to suggest that the monetary windfall had bearing at all on the latest EU judgement.  I agree with the EU that Microsoft is not open enough with their products, but I also think that the EU must now be consistent and require the same standards from Apple, Google and everyone else.  I simply wish to table for discussion, the possibility that this could start a bad chain of events.

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