I got the impression from the EU that they were looking to squeeze cash out of the big American company over the problem they had with Windows Media and also give their own companies a competitive edge.
Maybe. But oin tzhe other hand i don't get the impression that the EU wants absolutely gigantic companies with world domination - like Microsoft.
Face it: Microsoft is an american company implicitely and quietly distributing american concepts into the world - like every company does.
The only difference is that Microsoft is so much dominating everything that this simply isn't allowed in most european countries. At least not in Germany.
Whereas the U.S. doesn't have anything against market dominating companies, the European concept is that companies should not dominate a single market. It's as simple as that - and imho probably a cultural difference between both companies.
Here in germany the "Mittelstand" - the summary of all mid-size companies - are traditionally THE factor to produce the highest amount of goods and jobs.
Although the recent governments try their best to favour the big companies instead.
Here in Germany it is a strong belief that the Mittelstand is much more importanbt for economy than big companies (and small ones of course as well), because they return the best value, so to say - jobs and taxes.
I often get the impression that in the U.S. big mega-companies get a lot of freedom, and that the rich ones (both companies and individuals) pay less taxes than everyone else. Why, this is a puzzle to me - and to everyone else, assumed that this impression is right (the impression IS there, no matter whether it's right or wrong), because is is believed in the public that there should be a tjhing like progressive taxes : The more a company or an individual earns, the more taxes should be payed simply because there is more money there.
(Although recent governments tried their best to erode this, too.)
We currently have a problem in the "enrergy market" here in germany: The country is basically divided into 4 zones: 1 for every energy company.
What do they do ? They just increase the prices to squeeze the most money out of the people they can get without being called obsessed with money. They just defend themselves so much that just a fine border line between greed and economical need is maintained.
Monopolism is always good. For those who hold it.
Now, the people cry out because of the always increasing prices in this sector - so much that even the government is forced to act. The governments antitrust agency now looks into the prices demanded by the energy companies. For the first time they have to open up their calculations (they never had to do this before). And still, the public mistrusts them because of the increasing prices, and that although the companies show rational reasons for the increase (rising oil prices etc. ). But the companies act as if the falling reputation doesn't bother them at all. They just continue the increase.
Huge companies are quite suspicious in the public's minds here in Germany.
