[Qt-interest] (Off topic) EU stealing from US companies? (was: Re: Qt for the iPad?)

[Andre Somers]

On 13-4-2010 6:22, nobodyhere wrote:
> So yes - Apple isn't being very friendly, but they're well within their rights to do so; and they are not interfering in the market place either.
>    
> I didn't mean it as an argument for government regulation.  Although Microsoft has been attacked by the European Union over less (but then again, the EU is attacking all US technology companies - because who will stop them from stealing money from US companies?).  I meant it as an argument for developers and tech-savy consumers to consider Microsoft better than Apple - with respect to this specific issue.
>
> If you are a hardcore openness nut...  Then it is fine if you want to say "Microsoft is the devil".  But if you do, then please also say - "but Apple is worse than the devil".
>
> Oh, and you might want to add on top of that, that "Google is watching you" O:-)
>
>    
The EU is strict that companies operating in it's market, play by the 
rules. That is: they can not abuse their market power, and they can not 
form kartels, and some more rules like that. MS, and probably Intel, 
have violated those rules on multiple counts*. Note that these companies 
have also been procecuted for these facts in other countries, including 
the US and Japan. With those violations, they have been hampering the 
proper working of the EU market and keeping prices and competition down. 
That hurts EU consumers and taxpayers. It is not the EU "stealing" from 
US tech companies, but US tech companies stealing from EU consumers.

Yes, Apple seems to behave much worse than Microsoft at the moment**. A 
big difference is that Microsoft has a 90%+ marketshare (on the 
desktop), and Apple has nowhere near that. Not on any market. On the 
mobile market, Nokia is by far the biggest player (52% vs. 0.1% Apple!), 
so it is them who should be most wary of not violating the EU (and other 
markets') antitrust rules.

André

*) As have many EU companies, who have also had to pay up pretty big 
fines for things like illegal price fixing
**) Though Windows Mobile 7 seems to be become much more closed than any 
version before was. They are moving towards Apple in that respect.