1. World eBusiness Law Report
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July 28 2004 - 8razil Adz: Advogados Assoc;ados
Partial victory for Microsoft in Brazilian antitrust case
CADE, the Brazilian antitrust authority, has unanimously ruled in favour of the Brazilian arm
of Microsoft in an antitrust complaint filed by Paiva Píovesan Engenharia & Informátíca
Uda. The complaínt accused Microsoft of economic power abuse under Sections 20 and 21
~, of the Antitrust Law by including Mícrosoft Money software in the Microsoft Office Small
Busíness package.
Paiva c1aimed that Microsoft's actions:
• Iimited or restrained market access by new companies;
• posed difficulties for the development, establishment or operatíon of competítor
companies;
• bared competitors' access to input, raw material, equipment or technology sources,
as well as to distribution channels; and
• made the sal e of a product conditional to the acquisition of another.
As none of these alleged acts were confirmed, CADE c10sed the case, ruling in favour of
Microsoft However, the CADE case files will be sent to the Federal Prosecution Bureau
and the Union Account Court for the verification of (i) irregularities in the sales of 360,000
copies of Microsoft Money software to the Central Bank of Brazil and the Caixa Economica
Federal, and (ii) the alleged illegality, stated in an opinion issued by Professor Isabel Vaz,
that the prices in the sales agreements were fixed in foreign currency.
Erica Aoki, Aoki e Farios Advogados Associados, São Paulo
~Q~ cpyright 2001 ,,2004 G~obe Busfness Pubhsh~ng Ltd
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