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Microsoft's Asian antitrust appeal gets nixed
KFTC says cough up and strip down...

By Reuters

Published: Tuesday 23 May 2006

South Korea has rejected an appeal by Microsoft to overturn an antitrust decision against the world's largest software company.

The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) on Monday turned down the appeal of the ruling, which includes a fine of $34m.

In February, the KFTC issued a final ruling that Microsoft abused its dominant market position in South Korea by tying certain software to its Windows operating system. The preliminary ruling came in December.

Under the ruling, Microsoft is required to provide two separate versions of Windows after 24 August. One must be stripped of Windows Media Player and Windows Messenger, and the other must carry links to web pages that allow consumers to download competing versions of such software.

A Microsoft spokesman said the company hadn't seen the rejection and therefore could not comment.

In March, the software behemoth filed appeals with the KFTC and with the Seoul High Court seeking revocation of the ruling. The court has yet to rule, and it was not immediately clear how that might affect the KFTC's decision.

The KFTC began investigating Microsoft after a local internet portal, Daum Communications, filed a complaint with the commission in 2001. Microsoft reached a $30m settlement with the company in November 2005.