Government & Public Sector

Ten members of the U.S. House International Relations Committee are questioning the European Commission's decision last Wednesday to fine Microsoft Corp. US$605 million for anti-competitive practices, saying the U.S. has sufficiently addressed Microsoft antitrust issues.

Next year may be a big one for regulation of VOIP (voice over Internet Protocol) in the U.S., according to some speakers at the Voice on the Net (VON) conference in Santa Clara, Calif.

U.S. government agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are being pitched many new technologies, but government technologists have an obligation to consider ethical and moral issues such as privacy when embracing new applications, concluded a panel of technology experts speaking at the FOSE government computing trade show.

With the breakdown of settlement talks between the European Union and Microsoft Corp., the stage is set for the E.U. to announce next Wednesday a series of antitrust remedies and declare that the software company is an abusive monopolist, thus setting a precedent that will make it easier to prosecute other complaints, including several that are already under investigation.

Hopes of a last-minute settlement of Microsoft Corp.'s antitrust case in Europe dimmed Wednesday, after a morning meeting between competition commissioner Mario Monti and Steve Ballmer, the company's chief executive, broke up early without any apparent meeting of minds, said people close to the talks.

Antitrust regulators from the 15 European Union (E.U.) countries have unanimously backed the European Commission's negative ruling against Microsoft Corp., a Commission spokeswoman said Monday

The White House has released details of its proposed fiscal 2005 U.S. IT budget, which is showing signs of increased strain amid a ballooning national deficit, the continued war on terrorism and the urgent demands of homeland security.

Maher Arar, the Ottawa software engineer who was controversially held in Syria for 10 months, does not act like a man with much to hide.