Microsoft suffered a decisive antitrust defeat on Monday when a European Union court upheld a landmark ruling that the world’s largest software maker had abused its dominant market position to crush rivals. The second-highest EU court dismissed the company’s appeal on all key points against the 2004 European Commission ruling and upheld a record 497 million euro ($689.9 million) fine.
A jubilant EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes said the ruling should lead to a “significant drop” in Microsoft’s 95 percent market share. Microsoft’s top lawyer said it would affect the way the company markets its products in future. Shares in the U.S. software giant were down 1.14 percent in morning New York trade after the Luxembourg-based court’s ruling, suggesting investors were not overly concerned about the implications for Microsoft’s successful business model. Kim Caughey, senior analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group, which oversees more than $1 billion including Microsoft shares, for clients, said: “Although this is probably a setback for Microsoft’s strategy going forward, it’s not that big a deal for investors. The fines have already been accounted for, so none of the stuff announced today had bottom-line impact.”