MS to Offer Free Support to Rivals

Microsoft will offer free and unlimited technical support to its rivals who are interested in making their products work with the company's server products, it said Wednesday. The proposal is Microsoft's latest effort to comply with a European Union antitrust ruling.

Previously, the company was only offering 500 hours of support free of charge to rivals as part of a possible deal.

The EU antitrust office seemed to welcome the development, although said that it did not address the issue of Microsoft's technical documentation. The European Commission has repeatedly said that what Microsoft has provided so far is insufficient and does not meet the standards set by the 497 million euro antitrust judgment.

A decision on whether Microsoft would be fined two million euros per day backdated to December 15 would come next week after the company has a chance to plead their case, the EU said. Additionally, the antitrust judgment is under appeal, and a hearing is set on that for late April.

Regardless, Microsoft says its moves show a willingness to comply. "These new documentation projects, together with free and unlimited technical support and access to Windows source code, will ensure that our competitors have all the assistance they need," Microsoft general counsel Brad Smith said in a statement.

The EU disagrees, however, saying the documentation should be sufficient enough for rivals to make their software interoperate with Windows servers. According to a third-party appointed to review the documentation, there are still significant gaps that Microsoft must address.