So, Microsoft got a mighty big rap on the knuckles today when EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes, said, "Talk is cheap. Flouting the rules is expensive." How expensive? Well, several years of flouting the rules and talking a storm are going to cost Microsoft a record fine of 899 million euros, or about $1.35 billion. The penalty, about half what it could have been, was levied on the software behemoth for its continued failure between 2004 and October 2007 to provide rivals with reasonably priced and complete Windows development information. On top of previous fines stemming from the same judgment, Microsoft's EU tab stands at about $2.6 billion. Ouch! "Microsoft was the first company in 50 years of EU competition policy that the commission has had to fine for failure to comply with an antitrust decision," said Kroes in a statement. "I hope that today's decision closes a dark chapter in Microsoft's record of non-compliance." Microsoft could still appeal the size of the fine, but that didn't work on a previous attempt. As it stands, the fine is payable in full -- in euros only -- in three months. And it's not like paying up gets the EU off Microsoft's back. Just last month, antitrust regulators launched two fresh probes into the way Redmond does business. Even a company as rich as Microsoft can't keep this charade going forever!
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Next time... No more "Mr. Nice Guy!"
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