(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-09-17 20:35

"I don't want to talk about what will come next," said Microsoft lawyer Brad Smith in answer to questions about the possibility of an appeal. "We need to read the ruling before we make any decision."

European Union Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes urged Microsoft to act on the 2004 antitrust ruling.

"The court has upheld a landmark Commission decision to give consumers more choice in software markets," Kroes said in a statement. "Microsoft must now comply fully with its legal obligations to desist from engaging in anticompetitive conduct. The Commission will do its utmost to ensure that Microsoft complies swiftly."

Kroes called the decision "bittersweet," saying software customers still have no more choice than they did three years ago.

"The court has confirmed the Commission's view that consumers are suffering at the hands of Microsoft," she said.

She refused to say if EU regulators would follow up antitrust worries they flagged last year with Microsoft's new Vista operating system, saying only that "if it is not in line with our policy, then we will act."

The ruling showed that handing over key interoperability code that helped rivals make compatible products was required in the software market, she said.

The European Committee for Interoperable Systems called the ruling a good result.

"It's a very good day, for it signals that there will be fair competition for the sector," said Maurits Dolmans, a lawyer for the group.

In its 248-page ruling, the court upheld both the Commission's argument and its order for Microsoft to hand over information on server protocols to rivals. Microsoft had claimed these were protected by patents and the Commission was forcing it to give away valuable intellectual property at little or no cost.

The court confirmed "that the necessary degree of interoperability required by the Commission is well founded and that there is no inconsistency between that degree of interoperability and the remedy imposed by the Commission.

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