EU Levies Record $1.45 Billion fine in Intel Monopoly Case

My own belief is that this is the European way of taxing American firms.

European regulators hit Intel Corp. with a $1.45 billion fine -- the largest ever assessed there for a case involving monopoly abuse -- and called for changes in the way the U.S. company sells the microprocessors at the heart of most of the world's PCs.

The decision, which Intel vowed to appeal, underscored the European Union's willingness to challenge the business practices of dominant U.S. technology companies like Intel, Microsoft Corp. and Google Inc. Though there are new signs the Obama administration will get tougher on antitrust abuses, rules enforced by European regulators are already having a big effect on Silicon Valley companies and leaders of other industries. . . . .