European Commission competition commissioner Neelie
Kroes has said she can see no alternative to fining Microsoft for
not complying with a 2004 anti-trust judgement by the commission
against the company.
Asked whether Microsoft would be fined for failing to comply
with the 2004 anti-trust decision, Kroes told reporters in Berlin,
"I couldn't imagine another way."
An EU committee ruled on Monday that Microsoft failed to comply
with the anti-trust decision, opening the way for a daily €2m
(£1.4m) fine on the company while it doesn't comply.
Kroes is set to deliver a report on the matter next Monday, and
is expected to recommend a fine on the company. A final decision is
expected on 12 July.
Meanwhile, Microsoft continues to work to deliver the necessary
documentation for its workgroup protocols, in a format acceptable
to the commission.
The commission wants the company to share this information with
its rivals to make it easier for them to build rival products that
work in the Windows environment.
It is this area of the judgement Microsoft has been accused of
not complying with.