Microsoft Statement Regarding the European Court of First Instance's Judgment in the EU/Microsoft Case

Microsoft Statement Regarding the European Court of First Instance's Judgment in the EU/Microsoft Case

September 18, 2007

Statement by Microsoft Corp. Senior Vice President and
General Counsel Brad Smith


    LUXEMBOURG, Sept. 18 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- Statement
attributable to Brad Smith, Microsoft Corp. Senior Vice
President and General Counsel immediately following the
Court's ruling:

    ( Logo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO )

    "Well, we've obviously only had a very short
amount of time to read the decision that the court issued
today, and it's the type of decision that deserves the kind
of time required to understand it thoroughly.

    It is nonetheless clear that the court has agreed with
the Commission on a number of the Commission's points, and
I do want to simply start by expressing our gratitude to
this court for the lengthy consideration that it gave to
these issues. These are obviously complicated and important
topics, and we appreciate all of the objective and thorough
work that went into the decision that was issued today. 

    We appreciate the court's judgment on the trustee issue
and the monitoring mechanism, an issue where the court
agreed with us, and yet I would be the first to acknowledge
that I don't think anyone would say that is the most
important part of this case or this decision.

    It's clearly very important to us as a company that we
comply with our obligations under European law. We'll study
this decision carefully, and if there are additional steps
that we need to take in order to comply with it, we will
take them. 

    It will take us a little bit of time, at least over the
next few hours, to read the decision carefully, but
certainly that is one of our strongest convictions as we go
forward.

    We have been working hard over the last few years to
address these issues. Everyone agrees, for example, that
the version of Windows that we offer in Europe today is in
compliance with the Commission's 2004 decision, and I'm
also gratified that we were able to have the kinds of
constructive discussions with the European Commission last
year that enabled us to bring to market Windows Vista(R) in
conformity with the Commission's 2004 decision.

    In addition, there's obviously a lot of work that has
gone into our efforts to comply with the Commission's terms
with respect to communications protocols and our duty to
license them, a duty that obviously was reaffirmed by the
court's decision today. We've made a lot of progress in
that regard, and yet we all have to acknowledge that there
are some issues that do remain open.

    As we read today's decision more carefully, we're
hopeful that some aspects of it may add some clarity that
will help us all implement these remaining parts of the
decision. And as I said, if we need to take additional
steps in order to comply with today's decision, we will do
so.

    I would note that a lot has changed since this case
started in 1998. The world has changed, the industry has
changed, and our company has changed. We sought to
underscore that over a year ago when we published what we
described as our Windows(R) Principles, principles intended
to ensure that future versions of Windows, starting with
Windows Vista, would comport not only with the principles
of U.S. law but with the principles that are applicable
here in Europe as well.

    We've sought to be open and transparent, and we've
sought to strengthen our ties with the rest of our
industry. Indeed, it's notable that just last week we
announced a new agreement with Sun Microsystems, and the
week before that we announced a new agreement with Novell,
two of the companies that started out on the other side of
this case almost nine years ago.

    A lot has changed, but I will say that one thing has
remained constant, and will continue to do so, and that is
Microsoft's commitment to Europe. When this case started,
we published Windows in 24 European languages; today that
number is 41, and it will continue to grow. When we started
this case, we had 3,900 employees in Europe; today we have
13,000, and that number will continue to grow. When this
case started, we were spending $3 million a year on
research and development in Europe; today we are spending
almost half a billion, and that number will continue to
grow. Today we work with over 200,000 business partners,
who employ almost 3 million people on the European
continent, and that number too will continue to grow.

    So, we look forward to continued efforts to implement
and comply with today's decision, we welcome the
opportunity for continued discussion to adhere to our
duties with the European Commission, and we look forward to
hopefully continuing to move technology forward to create
more jobs on this continent.

    Thank you very much."

    Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) is the
worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that
help people and businesses realize their full potential.


    NOTE TO EDITORS: 

    If you are interested in viewing additional information
on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft(R) Web page at
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass on Microsoft's corporate
information pages. Web links, telephone numbers and titles
were correct at time of publication, but may since have
changed. For additional assistance, journalists and
analysts may contact Microsoft's Rapid Response Team or
other appropriate contacts listed at
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/contactpr.mspx .

    For more information, please contact: 

     EU Media:
      Anne-Sophie de Brancion
      Tel:   [phone]
      Email: [e-mail]

     US Media:
      Jack Evans
      Microsoft
      Tel:   [phone]
      Email: [e-mail]

     Web site:  http://www.microsoft.com