U.S. Backs Microsoft in EU Dispute

Microsoft Corp. is getting U.S. government support for its complaint that European Union antitrust regulators have denied access to evidence needed for the company’s defense.

Microsoft’s complaint raises “substantial concerns,” U.S. diplomats in Brussels said in a memo sent to the European Commission this week. The U.S.’ EU mission is led by C. Boyden Gray, a former White House counsel who lobbied on behalf of Microsoft during its battle with the U.S. Justice Department.

Relations between Microsoft and the EU have “hit a new low,” the memo said. The U.S. said it wanted to ensure that the commission treated the company fairly, according to a copy of the two-paragraph letter.

The EU ruled in March 2004 that Microsoft illegally abused the dominance of its software, which runs on more than 90% of the world’s personal computers, and fined it a record 497 million euros ($601 million).

The regulator is threatening an additional 2 million euros in daily fines unless the company provides “complete and accurate” information to competitors on how the Windows operating system communicates on networks.

Microsoft and commission officials declined to comment.