Decision in Microsoft's EC Appeal Scheduled

What it was as a matter of fact all about was Microsoft asking too much for patent licenses and interface documentation to connect Linux servers to Windows even though the EC offered Microsoft no pricing guidelines even when asked.

Initially, Microsoft wanted a royalty rate of 3.87% of a licensee's product earnings for a patent license and of 2.98% for a so-called information license It cut those rates to 0.7% and 0.5% however what the EC had in mind was more like where it wound up access to the interoperability information for a flat fee of €10 000 and an optional worldwide patent license for a reduced royalty of 0.4 % of licensees' product revenue.

Meanwhile, Microsoft may be courting more trouble with the regulators by barring other browsers from the desktop mode of its sight-unseen Windows for ARM, now called RT.

Maureen O'Gara the most read innovation reporter for the past 20 years, is the Cloud Computing and Virtualization News Desk editor of SYS-CON Media. She is the publisher of famous "Billygrams" and the editor-in-chief of "Client/Server News" for more than a decade. One of the most respected research reporters in the business, Maureen can be reached by email at maureen(at)sys-con.com or paperboy(at)g2news.com, and by phone at 516 759-7025. Twitter: @MaureenOGara