Re-thinking U.S. v. Microsoft in Light of the E.C. Case

Abstract:     
The paper contrasts U.S. and E.C. approaches to their Microsoft cases in light of three issues central to both cases: First, leverage theory, the central issue in both cases, which is articulated in the E.C. case but repressed in the U.S. case. Second, Microsoft's longstanding strategy of software integration. Third, attitudes toward technology interoperability. The paper concludes that U.S. judges and antitrust enforcement officials, as well as practitioners and scholars, can take three lessons from the E.C. case:
1. The value of leverage theory, particularly to analyze network industries with links to adjacent markets for system components.
2. The competitive harms of software integration, especially when an application program is bundled into a privately owned industry standard platform such as Windows.
3. The need for strong interoperability requirements, again where there is a privately owned industry standard.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 11

Keywords: antitrust, microsoft, E.C.

working papers series