$ cat ./records/european-commission-hits-microsoft-with-a-record-899-million-non--2008.txt
European Commission Hits Microsoft With a Record €899 Million Non-Compliance Fine
[RECORD.TXT] · cat --full
In February 2008, the European Commission fined Microsoft a then-record €899 million for failing to comply with its 2004 antitrust order — specifically for charging rivals 'unreasonable' prices for the technical information needed to make their products interoperate with Microsoft's dominant server software. It was the first time in 50 years of EU competition policy that the Commission penalized a company for non-compliance with an antitrust decision. Microsoft, chaired by Bill Gates, called the fine unfair and appealed; a court later trimmed it slightly to €860 million.
Source: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_08_318
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2026
Gates Foundation Trust Sells Off the Last of Its Microsoft Stock
In the first quarter of 2026, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust sold its remaining Microsoft shares, fully exiting a position in the very company that created Gates's fortune — capping a long, deliberate diversification away from the stock. The endowment that funds Gates's philanthropy, managed separately from its grant-making through Cascade, is now anchored instead by Berkshire Hathaway, Waste Management, railroads, and heavy-equipment makers. The sale underscored how thoroughly Gates's giving had decoupled from Microsoft's day-to-day fortunes.
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