Competition is a fair game but no one company can exploit trade and get away with it. The European antitrust regulator levied a record €899 million fine against Microsoft on Wednesday in a ruling designed to send a clear message to the world's biggest software maker - and to any other company - of the dangers of flouting its competition rulings. The size of the penalty, the equivalent of $1.3 billion, which surprised lawyers and legal experts, was a clear assertion of the power of the European Commission, which has emerged from a lengthy legal battle with Microsoft as arguably the world's most activist regulator. The battle with the commission has cost Microsoft €1.68 billion in fines. The European Commission issued the unanimous decision Wednesday after a five-year investigation, finding Microsoft in violation of EU competition law. The EU's antitrust authority said "because the illegal behavior is still ongoing," it would also demand changes in the way the U.S. software giant operated. It gave Microsoft 90 days to make available a European version of its Windows operating system to PC makers without a media player.

The decision restores the conditions for fair competition in the markets concerned and establishes clear principles for the future conduct of a company with such a strong dominant position.

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