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EU Plans To Make Apple, Adobe and Others Open Up

FlorianMueller writes "After pursuing Microsoft and Intel, European Commission Vice-President Neelie Kroes is now preparing an initiative that could have an even greater impact on the IT industry: a European interoperability law that will affect not only companies found dominant in a market but all 'significant' players. In a recent interview, Mrs. Kroes mentioned Apple. Nokia, RIM and Adobe would be other examples. All significant market players would have to provide access to interfaces and data formats, with pricing constraints considered 'likely' by the commissioner. Her objective: 'Any kind of IT product should be able to communicate with any type of service in the future.' The process may take a few years, but key decisions on the substance of the bill may already be made later this year."

8 of 389 comments (clear)

  1. Nice by KSobby · · Score: 0, Troll

    Hey EU, if you want to do well in a game, don't change the rules. Get better.

    --
    "It's difficult to meditate on amphetamines." - Joe Walsh
  2. No Free Market in the EU? by stewbacca · · Score: 0, Troll

    Hey Apple, give us all your code and make it available for Siemens, Philips, Ericsson, et. al.!

    We don't want to have to spend our precious Euros on R&D, so hand it over American companies!

  3. Re:NOT great news by commodore64_love · · Score: 1, Troll

    Yes you're right but at the same time, price-fixing ("pricing constraints") is not going to fix the problem. All it does is create shortages (because businessmen run-away from industries that lose money). See the Soviet Union and the rampant food shortages they had. The EU seems to be copying the same idea for the computer industry, and it won't work any better.

    "Former Soviet apparatchiks feel at home in the 'Yevropeyskiy Soyuz' (EU in russian)"
    EU MEP Hannan - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pl-amBxz-to

    The computer industry is not exactly a free market, but then neither was the videotape or music industry (VHS, CD dominated) and things worked out okay for the consumer. They were not ripped off. Besides computers are becoming more free as Microsoft loses share (dropped below 90%) and alternative companies/browsers are chipping-away at Internet Explorer. Plus the rise of the internet has provided a universal standard by which people communicate and do work.

    Consumers have more computer choice now than they had in 1995 or 2000. This sounds like a solution looking for a problem that is already fixed/diappearing.

    --
    "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - historian Evelyn Beatrice Hall
  4. Re:Great News by commodore64_love · · Score: 0, Troll

    Yet.

    I suspect Apple's about to get hit hard with a class action lawsuit (faulty phones)..... followed by a government investigation into Apple's 80% dominance in the MP3 market, and 90% dominance in the online music store business.

    --
    "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - historian Evelyn Beatrice Hall
  5. Re:NOT great news by TheKidWho · · Score: 1, Troll

    Wow. Who knew, you need to own a Mac to use development tools made for the Mac.

    Next your going to complain that you need a PS3 to play PS3 games.

  6. As a geek, I love this, but this is a bad idea by coolgeek · · Score: 1, Troll

    This is how Skynet will be born. By some clueless twit with dangeroulsy little knowledge, interfacing devices and systems to each other in unholy ways.

    --

    cat /dev/null >sig
  7. Re:What I'd Like to Know by mspohr · · Score: 0, Troll
    I can tell that you are a "newbie" at this "Internet" thing. I will let you in on a little secret. There is this thing called "Google" (same people who make Android).

    Type google.com

    Type "htc incredible root"

    (Here is the hard part...) Use your MOUSE to CLICK on any of the links on the page. Thery all link to instructions on how to root your HTC Incredible including a few detailed YouTube videos. I know you will find this "INCREDIBLE". You can thank me later.

    --
    I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
  8. Do they expect Apple to use Java instead? by aristotle-dude · · Score: 0, Troll
    Do these people in the EU government even have a clue about how software is written? If they expect Apple to allow Java or not only adopt Java and abandon their SDK then they must be mentally challenged.

    As an EU citizen I demand that we an investigation be launched into who is paying off this stupid woman.

    Apple would sooner pull out of the EU market than allow the EU bureaucracy to dictate what languages can be used to program for their platforms.

    --
    Jesus was a compassionate social conservative who called individuals to sin no more.