Microsoft Corp's European president Tuesday said the U.S. software giant spends around $220 million annually on philanthropic work around the world.
Jean-Philippe Courtois' comment comes just months before a decision by European regulators that could slap the company with a massive fine for antitrust abuses.
The $220 million, largely made up of software donations and training programs, is roughly 1% of Microsoft 's annual sales. European Union Competition Commissioner Mario Monti could impose a fine of more than 10 times that amount, or 10% of the company's annual sales.
Monti alleges that the company tried to muscle its competitors out of the media software and server software markets. Officials from the Commission, the E.U.'s executive branch, and Microsoft say they expect a decision in the three- year-old case shortly before or after the Commission's August recess.
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