For Immediate Release:

Wednesday, March 24, 2004

“Today’s ruling by the EU is yet another example of Europe’s consistent harassment of American industry and policies that support our economic growth. From agriculture to airplanes, and now software, Europe is attempting to re-write the marketplace to suit its desires.

Today’s ruling also disregards the comprehensive, forward-looking settlement that Microsoft, the U.S. Department of Justice and several state antitrust authorities painstakingly crafted in the U.S. proceedings. The EU has disregarded the U.S. resolution of this case by imposing penalties that are identical to those that the U.S. District Court explicitly rejected, and has imposed fines based in part on activities that were expressly permitted by U.S. courts.

This ruling punishes Microsoft for creative innovation, but in the end, it could be consumers who suffer most from a loss in new technology that may never be brought to market.

I urge the Administration to work to bring the Commission back to the table and settle these issues in a manner consistent with the work of the Department of Justice and the U.S. Courts.”