Microsoft-EU hearing cancelled
Microsoft will no longer be giving oral evidence in its appeal against the European Union’s charge of anti-competitive behavior in bundling Internet Explorer with Windows. The firm pulled out of a scheduled hearing claiming the absence of EU competition experts would make the event pointless.
Officials from Microsoft were set to present their arguments in person between June 3 and 5. The firm exercised its right to demand a hearing after EU officials issued a “ruling in principle” in January. That ruling would have automatically become final had Microsoft not contested it.
Now Microsoft says it will not appear at the hearing. Dave Heiner, a senior lawyer for the company, says many of the most important competition officials from the EU will be unable to attend as they have prior bookings at an antitrust conference in Zurich. Heiner believes “ holding the hearing at a time when key officials are out of the country would deny Microsoft our effective right to be heard and hence deny our “rights of defense” under European law.”
Microsoft requested a postponement to another date, but the EU says this is unnecessary. A spokesman told the New York Times that Neelie Kroes, the competition commissioner, would have attended the hearing.
Microsoft is keen to point out it is still willing to attend a hearing on another date. However, the EU’s procedure means that by refusing to attend on the scheduled dates, Microsoft is officially considered to have withdrawn its request for a hearing. The EU will now make it’s ruling on the existing evidence, including a written submission from Microsoft.
There are some theories that there’s more to Microsoft’s complaint that meets the eye. It’s possible the firm tried to delay the hearing in the hope that the European Parliament (which is up for election on June 7) would vote for a new head of the European Commission who might in turn replace Kroes in the competition role.
It’s also possible Microsoft wanted to find a way out of a hearing because rivals such as Opera, Firefox and Google would all have been eligible to attend and present their own evidence.
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