Steve Jobs Makes Appearance at EU Meeting in Brussels

by , 4:50 PM EDT, September 18th, 2008

Steve Jobs was in Brussels on Wednesday to participate in a European Union meeting on the state of music and technology firms in Europe.

The meeting was held to discuss how the promise of a "union" in Europe hasn't been completely successful on the Internet. That was the tone presented by EU competition commissioner Neelie Kroes

"The people of Europe were promised a union, a place without borders: but on the internet they have not yet got it. Progress has been made; sometimes impressive, but it is not enough. As Competition Commissioner, I want to know why. If this is because the competition rules are not clear enough, I will clarify them. If it is because the competition rules are not up to date, I will update them. And of course, if this is because the competition rules are not being respected, consumers and companies should know that I will enforce them," Ms. Kroes said.

Photo Credit: ars technica

The commissioner warned that unless the various technology chiefs start doing business in a unified manner, European trade enforcers will step in and force them to.

Apple itself has been trapped in a battle for uniform iTunes store music prices. Those prices have varied, by the demands of music companies in each country, and come under scrutiny for precisely the reasons Commissioner Kroes mentioned.