EU says Microsoft must stop blocking competition

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Microsoft must now stop behaving in a way that hurts competition after a ruling in a top European Union court on Monday, the EU's top competition regulator said.

"Microsoft must now comply with its legal obligations and desist from engaging in anti-competitive conduct," European Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes told a news conference.

Microsoft suffered a big defeat on Monday when the Court of First Instance backed a European Commission ruling from 2004 that the U.S. software giant illegally abused its market power to crush competitors.