Cleary Gottlieb successfully represented Hewlett-Packard (“HP”) in Florence against the claim of a customer requesting partial reimbursement of the purchase price of his new HP computer, following his refusal to use the Microsoft software supplied with the computer. Numerous similar claims are pending or have been threatened against HP in Italy and other European countries.
In its May 6 judgment, the Florence court sustained Cleary Gottlieb’s argument that customers buying HP computers equipped with Microsoft software are not entitled to claim partial reimbursement when refusing to accept Microsoft’s End User License Agreements. The Florence court also held that fatal to the plaintiff’s claim was his failure to disclose his “mental reservation” not to use the Microsoft software when buying his HP computer.
