EU fines Microsoft with $1.35 billion
The European Commission (EC) fined Microsoft 899 million Euros or $1.35 billion for non-compliance with the Commission’s March 2004 decision. According to the EC, Microsoft has become the first company in fifty years of EU competition policy that receives a penalty for failure to comply with an antitrust decision. The organization found that Microsoft did not follow the obligations imposed under a decision dating back to March 2004 prior to October 22, 2007.
Back then, The EC fined Microsoft 497 million Euros or almost $700 million for charging “unreasonable prices” for access to interface documentation for work group servers and had abused its dominant position under Article 82 of the EC Treaty. According to the decision, Microsoft was required to disclose interface documentation which would allow non-Microsoft work group servers to achieve ”full interoperability with Windows PCs and servers at a reasonable price.” This ruling was upheld in September of last year.
The $1.35 billion fine is imposed in addition to the original $700 million. “I hope that today’s Decision closes a dark chapter in Microsoft’s record of non-compliance with the Commission’s March 2004 Decision and that the principles confirmed by the Court of First Instance ruling of September 2007 will govern Microsoft’s future conduct,” said European Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes in a statement.
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What Is Photonics?
Photonics is the science of generating, controlling, and detecting photons, particularly in the visible and near infra-red spectrum, but also extending to the ultraviolet (0.2 - 0.35 µm wavelength), long-wave infrared (8 - 12 µm wavelength), and far-infrared/THz portion of the spectrum (e.g., 2-4 THz corresponding to 75-150 µm wavelength) where
today quantum cascade lasers are being actively developed. Photonics is an outgrowth of the first practical semiconductor light emitters invented in the early 1960s at General Electric, MIT Lincoln Laboratory, IBM, and RCA and made practical by Zhores Alferov and Dmitri Z. Garbuzov and collaborators working at the Ioffe Physico-Technical Institute and almost simultaneously by Izuo Hayashi and Mort Panish working at Bell Telephone Laboratories. Photonics most typically operates at frequencies on the order of hundreds of terahertz.
Just as applications of electronics have expanded dramatically since the first transistor was invented in 1948, the unique applications of photonics continue to emerge. Those which are established as economically important applications for semiconductor photonic devices include optical data recording, fiber optic telecommunications, laser printing (based on xerography), displays, and optical pumping of high-power lasers. The potential applications of photonics are virtually unlimited and include chemical synthesis, medical diagnostics, on-chip data communication, laser defense, and fusion energy to name several interesting additional examples.
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Purchasing A Magellan GPS
The Global Positioning System – or GPS – has taken the world by storm. What was once a proprietary item used only by the government, is now in demand by retail consumers worldwide. Those who have become used to GPS rely upon its accurate directional services; and the word continues to spread. A Magellan GPS is one of the more popular brands of GPS.
GPS utilizes the government’s network of 24 satellites that consistently circle the earth, providing timely and accurate logistical information. It was designed in the late 1970’s by the United States Department of Defense to be used as a reliable navigational tool for the military. But today, GPS has become mainstream, finding its way to consumers through a variety of convenient systems.
GPS receivers are hand-held units that literally fit into the palm of your hand. This portable system has the ability to connect to the Global Positioning Satellites which, through a series of calculations based on longitude and latitude can instantly and accurately pinpoint the user’s location. The screen of the GPS receiver illustrates a map of the area, including roads, terrain, and landmarks, and places the user’s location relative to these points of reference. Travelers and outdoor enthusiasts who take to the mountains every weekend have found the GPS receivers to be invaluable in providing accurate navigation and ensuring safety.
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