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Microsoft Under More EU Fire

Posted Feb 8, 08 12:43 PM CST in Business,  Technology 

(Newser) – Shortly after the EU announced two new antitrust probes focusing on Microsoft, investigators are scrutinizing the company again. In question this time is whether Microsoft broke antitrust laws during a push last year to get its Office software file format approved as an international standard, reports the Wall Street Journal.

In September, Microsoft lost a first vote on whether to give its new Open XML Office file format the approval of the International Organization for Standardization. ISO's imprimatur makes selling to governments easier. But in the lead-up to the balloting, large numbers of Microsoft supporters joined various countries’ standards bodies, sparking accusations that the firm was attempting to stack the committees.

Source Wall Street Journal

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Microsoft chairman Bill Gates smiles during his keynote speech at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Jan. 6, 2008. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)   (Associated Press)
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Microsoft  • European Union  • antitrust  • Microsoft Office  • Open XML


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