COMMISSION SAYS TECH INDUSTRY NEEDS TO BEWARE

COMMISSION SAYS TECH INDUSTRY NEEDS TO BEWARE

Then Says “Maybe Not.” Question From Industry is, “Which is it?”

STATEMENT BY JONATHAN ZUCK, PRESIDENT OF ACT

Today the Court of First Instance confirmed two decisions by the European Commission on the antitrust case against Microsoft. The first decision orders the availability of a version of Windows without Media Player from Windows operating systems. The second regarded the disclosure of interoperability information for work group server systems. Jonathan Zuck, President of the Association for Competitive Technology, said in a first reaction to the judgment:

“The Commission just got a treat from the Court, but SMEs and consumers will actually foot the bill.  Microsoft clearly lost today, but it is unclear just how bad it is for the rest of the industry and consumers.”

On Precedents for Broader Industry Zuck said: “During the course of her press conference, Commissioner Kroes argued that this is ‘an important precedent, not just for this particular product or this particular market,’ but then said other companies do not have anything to worry about.  The question from industry is, “Which is it?”

“Lawyers will be debating whether this is a precedent for years, so the only real issue are the actions of the Commission.  Will the Commission engage industry in a constructive way, or install itself as its regulator?”

Will Neelie Kroes be leading a prison march of the world’s successful firms through her Brussels doors?  Perhaps the only real question is whether it is Apple, Google, Intel or Adobe that will be next dragged before the Commission.  Or does she more appropriately view this as a decision based on a 10 year old set of facts that does not broadly expand her powers to manage the development of software and the market share of companies in every market.”

On the Media Player Zuck said: “Following today’s judgment, consumers and developers are unlikely to see the technologies they are demanding – like voice recognition and multi-touch interfaces – integrated into Windows.  The result will be higher costs and more complexity for software developers and consumers alike. The decision on the Media Player opens a dangerous precedent for other companies and sectors. Airbus should start worrying about adding new features to their planes.”

Commenting on the interoperability issue Zuck added: “This decision marks the start of a dark period for ICT companies – large or small – with a high degree of uncertainty around the protection of their intellectual property. The precedent will threaten the ability of any successful company to protect its innovations. The conditions under which Microsoft will be obliged to give away its IP-protected information will be the key to gauging just how bad this is for the technology start-ups who depend on the value of their IP.”

ACT will be analysing the judgement in the coming hours; further reactions can be expected in the course of the day. ACT will also be blogging about the judgement throughout the day at http://blog.actonline.org.

The Association for Competitive Technology (ACT) is an international education and advocacy group for the technology industry. Focusing on the interests of small and mid-size entrepreneurial technology companies, ACT advocates for a “Healthy Tech Environment” that promotes innovation, competition and investment. ACT has been active on issues such as intellectual property, international trade, e-commerce, privacy, internet policy and antitrust. ACT represents more than 3000 software developers, systems integrators, IT consulting and training firms, and e-businesses from around the world.