# Micro$oft fined $613 - who gets the money?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/micro-oft-fined-613-who-gets-the-money/236112>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 24, 2004, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/micro-oft-fined-613-who-gets-the-money/236112 "2004-03-24T11:13:33Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 8\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![legion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/838e76/32.png) [@legion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legion)\
**Post date:** [March 24, 2004, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/micro-oft-fined-613-who-gets-the-money/236112/1 "2004-03-24T11:13:33Z")

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Where does the money go in cases like this?

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**Author:** ![legion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/838e76/32.png) [@legion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legion)\
**Post date:** [March 24, 2004, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/micro-oft-fined-613-who-gets-the-money/236112/2 "2004-03-24T11:14:42Z")

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OP title should have read $613 **million**. ☹

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**Author:** ![legion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/838e76/32.png) [@legion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legion)\
**Post date:** [March 24, 2004, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/micro-oft-fined-613-who-gets-the-money/236112/3 "2004-03-24T11:16:56Z")

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Dammit! I give up. You know what I meant. :mad:

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**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\
**Post date:** [March 24, 2004, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/micro-oft-fined-613-who-gets-the-money/236112/4 "2004-03-24T11:33:04Z")

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By whom were they fined? Presumably, it would go to them.

Unless you’re talking about a jury award of some sort.

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**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\
**Post date:** [March 24, 2004, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/micro-oft-fined-613-who-gets-the-money/236112/5 "2004-03-24T11:41:06Z")

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Doctor Evil: I’m going to fine McDonalds six hundred and thirteen dollars! (little finger to corner of mouth)

Aide: whisper whisper whisper

DE: I’m going to fine McDonalds six hundred and thirteen _million_ dollars! (little finger to corner of mouth)

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**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\
**Post date:** [March 24, 2004, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/micro-oft-fined-613-who-gets-the-money/236112/6 "2004-03-24T11:45:43Z")

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> [@friedo](#):
>
> By whom were they fined? Presumably, it would go to them.

[Microsoft hit by record EU fine](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3563697.stm)

> [@](#):
>
> Software giant Microsoft must pay a fine of 497m euros ($613m; £331m) for abusing its dominant market position, the EU has ordered.  
> EU Competition Commissioner Mario Monti also insisted Microsoft must reveal secrets of its Window’s software, which sits on 90% of the world’s PCs.
> 
> The European Commission approved Microsoft’s punishment on Wednesday.

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**Author:** ![Ross](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e274bd/32.png) [@Ross](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ross)\
**Post date:** [March 24, 2004, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/micro-oft-fined-613-who-gets-the-money/236112/7 "2004-03-24T13:13:53Z")

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Heh, yeah, this makes the last court case look like a… smaller court case.

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**Author:** ![Ponster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponster/32/17081_2.png) [@Ponster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponster)\
**Post date:** [March 25, 2004, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/micro-oft-fined-613-who-gets-the-money/236112/8 "2004-03-25T17:04:21Z")

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**How Microsoft’s fine would be spent**

> [@](#):
>
> …the money, all 497m euros of it, will go into the European Union’s general budget.

[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk\_news/magazine/3564731.stm](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/3564731.stm)