16 February 2012
Cisco Systems has launched an appeal of the European Commission's decision to approve Microsoft's acquisition of Skype.
In a landmark deal last May, Microsoft bought Skype for $8.5 billion (£5.4 billion), outbidding the likes of Google and Facebook. In October, the European Union approved the deal and ruled it would not impede competition.
However, Cisco is now challenging that ruling, stating certain conditions are needed to prevent the mega merger from blocking other videos services.
"Cisco does not oppose the merger, but believes the European Commission should have placed conditions that would ensure greater standards-based interoperability, to avoid any one company from being able to seek to control the future of video communications," Marthin De Beer, senior vice president of the Cisco Emerging Business Group, wrote in an official blog post.
He added: "This appeal is about one thing only: securing standards-based interoperability in the video calling space. Our goal is to make video calling as easy and seamless as email is today."
Cisco's core business is currently routers and switches, but sees video as the future of communication. The company now offers its own video conferencing service, and open standards for video services would potentially allow calls to be made between other services - like Skype, Microsoft's Lync, Google Voice and Cisco's WebEx.
A spokesperson for Microsoft responded to the appeal, stating: "The European Commission conducted a thorough investigation of the acquisition, in which Cisco actively participated, and approved the deal in a 36-page decision without any conditions. We're confident the Commission's decision will stand up on appeal."
Cisco appeals EU decision on Microsoft-Skype merger
Cisco Systems has launched an appeal of the European Commission's decision to approve Microsoft's acquisition of Skype. In a landmark deal last May, Microsoft bought Skype for $8.5 billion (£5.4 billion), outbidding the likes of Google and Facebook. In October, the European Union approved the deal and ruled it would not impede competition.
However, Cisco is now challenging that ruling, stating certain conditions are needed to prevent the mega merger from blocking other videos services.
"Cisco does not oppose the merger, but believes the European Commission should have placed conditions that would ensure greater standards-based interoperability, to avoid any one company from being able to seek to control the future of video communications," Marthin De Beer, senior vice president of the Cisco Emerging Business Group, wrote in an official blog post.
He added: "This appeal is about one thing only: securing standards-based interoperability in the video calling space. Our goal is to make video calling as easy and seamless as email is today."
Cisco's core business is currently routers and switches, but sees video as the future of communication. The company now offers its own video conferencing service, and open standards for video services would potentially allow calls to be made between other services - like Skype, Microsoft's Lync, Google Voice and Cisco's WebEx.
A spokesperson for Microsoft responded to the appeal, stating: "The European Commission conducted a thorough investigation of the acquisition, in which Cisco actively participated, and approved the deal in a 36-page decision without any conditions. We're confident the Commission's decision will stand up on appeal."
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