News Release
Mario Monti
No.
49/03
August 6, 2003
COMMISSION GIVES MICROSOFT LAST OPPORTUNITY TO COMMENT
BEFORE CONCLUDING ITS ANTITRUST PROBE
The European Commission has given Microsoft
a final opportunity to comment before it concludes its antitrust probe. The Commission
has gathered additional evidence from a wide variety of consumers, suppliers and
competitors. This evidence confirms and in many respects bolsters the Commission's
earlier finding that Microsoft is leveraging its dominant position from the PC
into low-end servers and that Microsoft's tying of Windows Media Player to the
Windows PC operating system weakens competition on the merits, stifles product
innovation and ultimately reduces consumer choice. The Commission also invites
Microsoft to submit its comments on a series of remedies it intends to impose
in order to bring the antitrust infringements it has identified to an end. As
this complex investigation draws to a close, the Commission will continue to ensure
a meticulous respect of due process. Therefore, the Commission has addressed to
Microsoft a final Statement of Objections.
Mario Monti,
Competition
Commissioner, said "This Statement of Objections, which includes the identification
of appropriate remedies, gives Microsoft a last opportunity to comment before
the Commission concludes the case. We are determined to ensure that the final
outcome of this case is to the benefit of innovation and consumers alike."
The evidence collected
The
Commission's Statement of Objections sets out to inform Microsoft of the results
of its last extensive market enquiry. The evidence gathered in this market enquiry
confirms the allegations concerning lack of interoperability and tying already
outlined in the Commission's two previous Statements of Objections (see
IP/00/906 and
IP/01/1232). In light of this evidence, the Commission's preliminary conclusion
is that Microsoft's abuses are still ongoing.
In
the field of interoperability, the Commission's evidence confirms that Microsoft
is leveraging its overwhelmingly dominant position from the PC into low-end servers,
the computers which provide core services to PCs in corporate networks. The Commission
contacted a significant number of small, medium and large enterprises selected
from all industrial sectors and from across the entire EEA (European
Economic Area) and requested information on whether interoperability considerations
were a factor in their purchasing choices and whether non-disclosures of such
information by Microsoft influenced their purchase decisions.
An overwhelming majority of customers responding to this market enquiry highlighted
that Microsoft's non-disclosure of interface information—necessary for competing
servers to “talk” properly with Windows PCs and servers—did indeed artificially
alter their choice in favour of Microsoft's server products. This behaviour is
detrimental to competition on the merits.
As
regards tying, the Commission contacted a large number of suppliers in various
segments of the market. The companies constitute a representative sample of randomly
selected content owners, content providers and software developers across the
EEA and the United States.
All companies were asked to provide information on the specifics of their industries
and what factors determined their business decisions. The replies highlighted
that the ubiquity of Windows Media Player on PCs artificially skews their development
incentives in favour of Microsoft. This confirms the Commission's preliminary
conclusion that Microsoft's tying of Windows Media Player to the Windows operating
system weakens competition on the merits, stifles product innovation and ultimately
reduces consumer choice.
Remedies
As
regards remedies, the Commission has provisionally identified the core disclosure
obligations that would be indispensable for Microsoft's competitors in low-end
servers to achieve full interoperability with Windows PCs and servers. Microsoft
would be obliged to reveal the necessary interface information so that rival vendors
of low-end servers are able to compete on a level playing-field with Microsoft.
With
respect to tying, the Commission has set out two alternative proposed remedies.
The first would be the untying of Windows Media Player from Windows, whereby Microsoft
would be required to offer a version of Windows without Windows Media Player included.
This is the normal remedy for a tying infringement. The second would be a “must-carry”
provision, whereby Microsoft would be obliged to offer competing media players
with Windows. Both solutions seek to ensure that consumers have a fair choice
as regards media players.
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Press Contacts:
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Wilfried Schneider
202-862-9523
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Maeve O'Beirne
202-862-9549
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