The EU is investigating Apple

A little while ago the French came pretty close to ruling the tying of iTunes and iPods anti-competitive but backed down. In Microsoft's case it was ruled, in the US and Europe, to be acting unfairly by merely packaging Media Player in with Windows. Users could still delete or replace Media Player and the replacement would function with Windows. By comparison, iTunes and an iPod only work with each other and no other hardware or software. The difference in treatment can only really be explained as a delayed reaction on the part of the authorities or Apple's hippyish, anti-establishment brand allowing it to sneak under the radar. Part of the reason the French are thought to have backed off is that Apple threatened to withdraw the service from France on the grounds tying is essential to their licensing system.

I'm not convinced the case against Microsoft was ever that strong. There are plenty of alternatives to Windows and if being given Media Player was really such a hassle I expect PC suppliers and customers would move pretty quickly. In reality Microsoft were just adding functionality and if competitors were good enough their software would be added by users or PC manufacturers in addition to the Microsoft software. In much the same way, while Apple's lead in hard-disk MP3 players may look formidable right now there is no reason to suspect that customer ill-will cannot kill this pretty quickly. There are alternatives which mean people could avoid buying iPods.

Now the FT reports that the European Commission is investigating Apple but not in an investigation of tying. The EU Commission is actually sticking to its brief for once and ensuring that the common market functions properly. Apple is being investigated for not allowing EU customers to shop from any EU store. This came up after Which magazine found that British customers were being charged significantly more than customers in other EU countries. Apple's defence, that this was insisted upon in licensing negotiations, just raises more questions as that means the problem is a broader one in the music industry.

The hypothetical of the commission taking antitrust action against Apple over the same issue as the French would have been very interesting. It would have offered quite a test of the power of pooled sovereingty.