European Commission Finding Upheld – Microsoft Abused Its Dominant Market Position

In September of this year, the European Court of First Instance (Court) handed down judgment in Microsoft Corporation v Commission of the European Communities. The Court upheld the European Commission's earlier finding that Microsoft had abused its dominant market position through refusing to supply interoperability information and tying Windows Media Player with the Windows PC operating system. The €497 million fine imposed by the Commission was also upheld.

A disclosure remedy imposed by the Commission and upheld by the Court requires Microsoft to provide its competitors with certain interoperability information. A comparable decision in Australia would highlight again the extent to which section 46 of the Trade Practices Act can act as a de facto access regime.