While I agree that any organization wishing to draw revenue from a country beyond its own borders should be expected to conduct business within the regulations of that country, what exactly gives the EU the right to charge that company 10% of their *global* revenue for an infraction against EU regulations? I could understand a fine based on a percentage of revenues with the union itself, as compensation for perceived damage to the European economy. But how can factoring in revenues from non-EU countries possibly be legal?

Hardware en boxed digital material isn't a problem, we can just buy it in the other country. Only digital content is a problem because the buyer can be restricted to buy everything in 1 country and that is against EU regulations.

The US can charge a company a big fine if it does business with Cuba via other country's or via sister company's, its more political but basically the same.

How did *politics* ever enter the comments on this one? And where in the world is it possible to imagine 'socialist' is an insult. It's like being called a 'democrat.'

And how can 2 people both be upset and angry because a government is actually representing the interests of the people it governs, even though those interests conflict with the interests of very big corporations. You seem to be saying, hurray for multinational record companies, down with the EU, and down with representative government. Is that it?

Incidentally, the EU *did* invent their own operating system. It's called Linux. And yes, it too is socialist.

Brazil is expensive because of the import duties placed on the product, this is not something Apple has any say in but something that should be taken up with the Government. As far as regional stores in the EU, the rights to the individual songs can be held by different people in every country...Apple in some cases is forced to negotiate with multiple parties for the same song on a by country basis. Since each one of these parties only controls the pricing in their country they keep Apple from using a pan EU price. The EU needs to get it's act together on copyrights before they go after Apple.

The truth, unbeknownst to the poorly educated and informed occupants, is that the USA is in decline and will be very quickly eclipsed by China and possibly India.

Most of the trouble we see now is the USA having a mid-life crisis and struggling with its fading dominance, whilst it is still armed to the teeth.

The reason the USA will probably never go to war with China is that even 2 decades ago 90% of all screws and bolts were manufactured there. It would be even worse now and not just for screws and bolts. Soon as the States needed parts for their tanks and planes they'd be stuffed.

The reason they can't go to war with China is because 65% of them can't point it out on a map of the world. Fact!

The way I feel about this (and yes I do use Linux too and it was the whole world who worked on it thanks to the Internet which is an anarchy not a socialist rule) is that if Europe wants to do what will be equally damaging to Microsoft than by all mean go after Apple. First, do the only thing that will make Microsoft ever consider following any nations laws - ban all Microsoft products from Europe permanently. Just fining Microsoft a billion dollars is like the library fining a $.10 fine against people who keep their books out too long and is equally ineffective.

"The reason the USA will probably never go to war with China is that even 2 decades ago 90% of all screws and bolts were manufactured there. It would be even worse now and not just for screws and bolts. Soon as the States needed parts for their tanks and planes they'd be stuffed."

The reason the US government will fight China, itself, and Europe is that they are all addicted to oil and people in all industrialized countries will fight for to the death for the luxury of personal transportation. You have to realize that most of the US never voted for Bush - the Supreme Court installed him before counting all the votes. Everyone I voted for since I was of age never got elected - if they did, then the US wouldn't have invaded Iraq.

I don't see why the US even under Bush is any worse than the damage Europe has done to the world over the last 500 years. Iraq would never had been in the situation it was if not for the way the British and French divided up the Middle East. And the people who caused the problems in America were mostly of European descent.

I'm not sure how this board entered into a US Bash Fest, but let me address some points here please.

--------- "ext time... The next time the USA invades another country to secure its addiction to oil at the behest of corrupt industry monopolies, let it cop the consequences.

Oh it's happened already! posted by rubaiyat " ---------

rubaiyat, your ignorance of World history, politics, and facts is quite concerning. First, let us remember that Iraq sells the US VERY LITTLE oil and the fact is, it produces very little oil and only by the US will it produce more as we help upgrade their facilities. If you take a look, we import the majority of our imported oil from Canada, Mexico, Saudi, and Venezuela.

http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/company_level_imports/current/import.html

So educate yourself a bit before speaking- Okay?

--------- Soon as the States needed parts for their tanks and planes they'd be stuffed. posted by rubaiyat ---------

As I recall, we were an industrial nation once. I'm quite sure we can figure it out again.

--------- The actual goods are shipped more or less directly from China where they are made, so how come consumers closer to source actually pay more than the USA? ---------

Um, Tariff perhaps? And I really don't know, but different Countries charge different tariffs.

--------- They must have some pretty poor schooling in the USA to breed so many jingoistic zealots who are unable to read and understand what is put in front of them. posted by clive ---------

Yeah, okay!

--------- But how can factoring in revenues from non-EU countries possibly be legal? posted by guest ---------

AGREED! This is VERY wrong!

--------- ou have to realize that most of the US never voted for Bush - the Supreme Court installed him before counting all the votes.posted by bhuot ---------

Yet another Ignorant statement. If most did not, then how was it contested, thus making it to the SC? Fact is, both received near 50% thus the recount.

bhout: You may not realise but the cult of the car is not universal nor inbred, but is an artifact of 100 years of non-stop marketing propaganda. largely originating from the USA. As is that for exploitative agribusiness, fattening processed food, unhealthy "labor-saving" consumerism, mindless entertainment and "news" that is indistinguishable from mindless entertainment.

The USA fought to be independent of Europe over 200 years ago, I'd say by now it is responsible for its own actions and corrupt politics.

True the British and French imperialists stuffed up Iraq. It is hard to see how they could have carved up the Ottoman provinces in any way that wouldn't have caused trouble. The Arabs have fractured and preyed on each other at every opportunity ever since.

Most ex-colonies except those which already had a free and democratic culture previously have failed to acquire one.

Since they acquired "independence" many were targeted by the States if they possessed something America wanted. Iran was a classic case, where the USA overthrew a genuine democrat who simply tried to control Iran's own resources. Check the CIA "Fact Book" on Iran and see how that period is neatly omitted. Americans mostly seem unaware just how much is tipexed out of its "free press".

Europe it is true is responsible for a great many good and bad things, including the USA, but the heritage they left behind in their ex-colonies around the world stands on its own merits.

The neglect that much of that fell into on their exit, can be only accounted for by the "freedom fighters" who replaced them.

The EU’s courts are able to reach out to account for fines based on global turnover (hey, is anyone complaining about this happening to Microsoft?) in the same way that other jurisdictions give themselves powers. For example the US trying to control global trade with Cuba by potentially seizing the US assets of any company, based anywhere in the world. Or, where US courts awards damages against sovereign states for terrorism against US citizens - where the terrorism occurred outside the USA.

Another example is the UK being able to prosecute those that have s** with what the UK would consider minors, even though such may be legal in a third country (where the "offence" took place), so as to crack down on "s** tourism".

Oh, and it always cracks me up when you silly yanks go on about Europe, even saying that many of the founders of the USA were of European descent and thus the ills of the early USA (genocide of the plains indians, slavery, etc) were created by Europeans! Hey, but you missed out that the War of Independence, the constitution, your whole body of law and your entire cultural heritage was lead by and created by those same useless b******* of European ancestry!

What a joke.

Clive you remind me that one of the many reasons the Americans broke with Britain was that it respected the treaties it made with the Indian tribes and tried to stop the colonialists breaking them whenever they felt like it.

If the Europeans were the root of all the evil how come they were the ones who ended slavery whilst the USA continued the practice? Slaves had to flee to Canada to get protection from the evil imperialists.

Even when the USA finally outlawed slavery, it has continued it in a virtual form right up to today with the exploitation of immigrants, blacks and the working poor. It has been such a noble tradition the USA has exported the practice around the world under the guise of "Economic Rationalism".

"rubaiyat, your ignorance of World history, politics, and facts is quite concerning. First, let us remember that Iraq sells the US VERY LITTLE oil and the fact is, it produces very little oil and only by the US will it produce more as we help upgrade their facilities. If you take a look, we import the majority of our imported oil from Canada, Mexico, Saudi, and Venezuela."

Greenspan and virtually everybody with a few grey cells left to rub together doesn't buy the "helpful USA" nonsense. Not that the story EVER made sense, no matter how often it was altered. The clueless US citizen's short attention span seems to have not noticed, how many lies he has been told, and in which order.

Iraq WAS a major exporter before the USA "helped upgrade" it.

Iraqi oil is now controlled by US corporations and always formed part of the world supply, every bit of which influences every other.

Including neighboring Saudi Arabia and Kuwait which feed the US addiction to pointless waste and stuffing up the environment to meet a consumerist fetish that leaves you no happier no matter how much you buy and throw away.

This current love fest was, as usual, kicked off by yet another xenophobic and hypocritical American diatribe.

The question is does the rest of the world fear and hate the USA as much as the USA seems to fear and hate the rest of the world of which it knows very little.

These are the best comments ever published on MacNN ! A little history, a little politics, economics. Keep it up !

Even as a Frenchman, I am a little taken aback by the vehemence of the criticism of the United States. However, I am also a little disappointed when citizens of the United States think that the EU is a communist state.

In principle and practice, regulation is sometimes, but not always, necessary to protect competition. The purpose of regulation is to promote competition, not to supplant it. This is recognised in the United States which has its own competition laws. From Adam Smith to Hayek, many pro-market (not pro-business) writers and institutions accept that regulation is sometimes needed to ensure that companies compete and compete fairly.

However, this EU issue is slightly different. It is the law of the EU that within the EU there exists a common market. The common market entails freedom of movement within EU member states of persons, goods and money without barriers. A company that sells a product in one Member State must allow that product to be purchased by a person in another Member State. The free movement of persons and goods is a fundamental principle that underpins the common market within the EU.

There is some concern in the European Commission that the Apple iTunes system does not comply with this fundamental principle. Therefore, it has decided to investigate. No conclusions have yet been reached. No blame has yet been laid. No party has yet been found in breach.

de Villiers

EU needs to clarify just who they are going after. It clearly states that there going after iTunes which is Apple. If it is the record labels they are going after then why do all the headlines say they are going after iTunes and Apple. Apple can only influence the price, but the record labels have the last word as to what the prices will be. So the record labels should be fined, not Apple. Apple is only providing them with the best means to sell there records, not control the prices. Although Steve Jobs would very much like to control them and lower them but his hands are tied.

Prices of hardware are affected by import tariffs, distribution costs, etc. - can't really compare unless all these "external" costs are equal.

Yes I am aware of the import tariffs etc.

Australia now has a Free Trade Agreement with the USA so tariffs have been eliminated. There is a flat 10% GST applied to all manufactured goods and services and I have allowed for that.

There are Federal, State and local taxes applied in the States as well, the combination of these varies considerably and is usually quoted separately.

Perhaps a few posters from different locales in the States can tell us what applies in their areas.

By States I meant the United States, not the Australian states which do not have any extra taxing power. Not on goods or income anyway.