KROES TO FACE DOWN MICROSOFT TITAN.

• Position: Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes' role in anti-trust ruling case

It looks almost certain that US software giant Microsoft will make history by becoming the first company to be hit with fines for failing to respect a European Commission anti-trust ruling. The company has been resorting to an escalating public relations war against the Commission in the last couple of weeks. First, the company's top lawyer gave an hour-long press conference about its offer to grant access to part of the source code for Windows while Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes only received a two-page fax on the proposal. Mrs Kroes is still waiting for more details on the offer which, the company says, goes beyond what is needed to comply with the ruling. Second, Microsoft leaked a letter from its top legal advisor, complaining that the Commission is denying it the "usual rights of defence" by refusing to grant it access to internal Commission documents about its case. Resorting to a PR campaign cannot help but cast doubts about the validity of its arguments.

The latest move shows that the company wants a further extension to the February 15 deadline set by the Commission for presenting its arguments to back up its claim that it is already complying with the ruling.

While Microsoft will probably get an additional stay of execution, its chances of avoiding fines...