[Discussioni]Newsscan

[Francesco Potorti`]

MICROSOFT DISCOUNTS COULD RAISE EYEBROWS AT EU
Microsoft is offering hefty discounts on its products in an apparent effort 
to undercut the cost advantage of Linux -- behavior that one European 
antitrust lawyer says appears to violate European law. "If it's true, the 
discounts would constitute an abuse," said competition law attorney Thomas 
Vinje. Microsoft is under investigation by European regulators for possibly 
abusing its dominance in the software market. The company said it had set 
aside two funds as part of its strategy to combat Linux. One is set aside 
for providing discounts to governments and the education sector, and the 
other is earmarked for enabling the sales force to undersell competitors 
peddling Linux software. "The primary objective is to make technology 
available to customers at low prices," says a Microsoft spokesman. 
(Reuters/Los Angeles Times 16 May 2003)
http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-micro16may16,1,3238795.story?coll=la%2Dheadlines%2Dtechnology