Justice Department Fines Gates $800,000

[TacticalPeek]

Justice Department Fines Gates $800,000

The Microsoft chairman was fined for allegedly failing to disclose his investment in a pharmaceutical company.

By Paula Rooney, CRN, InformationWeek
May 3, 2004
URL: http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=19400249

Microsoft chairman Bill Gates has agreed to pay a fine of $800,000 for allegedly failing to disclose an investment in a Seattle-area pharmaceutical company, the
Department of Justice said Monday.

According to a Justice Department civil suit filed Monday in the U.S. District Court in Washington, Gates failed to comply with antitrust premerger notification
requirements of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act after acquiring more than $50 million worth of voting securities in Icos Corp.

Gates, who acquired the securities through his personal investment company, is on the board of directors at Icos. The Justice Department said Gates is not exempt
from notification because he intends to participate in business directions of the company.


http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=19400249

[cosmicdot]

1. does it get to write that $800K off his taxes?

the way things seem to work in this crazy world, it wouldn't surprise me

wonder what this Icos company do do

who is Michael Larson?


Gates has 9% voting power.

Name of Beneficial Owner
----------------------------
Shares
Beneficially
Owned

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Percentage of
Common
Stock

----------------------------------------------------------------------

William H. Gates III
c/o Michael Larson
2365 Carillon Point
Kirkland, WA 98033
5,727,303 9.0 %

PRIMECAP Management Company
225 South Lake Avenue #400
Pasadena, CA 91101
5,584,500 8.8 %

http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/874294/000119312504044825/ddef14a.htm

for that matter, who/what is PRIMECAP?

The company is the adviser for Vanguard® PRIMECAP Fund and Vanguard® Capital Opportunity Fund, both are among Vanguard’s most popular growth-oriented U.S. offerings.

The firm is relatively small, overseeing only US$22.3 billion in assets as of 2002 and limiting the number of mandates it manages to 20. In fact, PRIMECAP Management is not accepting new clients, making Vanguard one of the few ways investors can access PRIMECAP’s investment management expertise.

However PRIMECAP is a small firm by design, structured to give its people the best opportunity to conduct the kind of concentrated and in-depth research that leads to good investment ideas. The firm also focuses almost exclusively on a single investment style (multi-cap growth equity) and maintains an investment approach and methodology that have served it well over the long term—criteria Vanguard views as vital in selecting active management fund advisers.

PRIMECAP’s investments have solid grounding in fundamental research. U.S. Opportunities Fund’s managers —Howard Schow, Theo Kolokotrones, Joel Fried and Al Mordecai—and their analysts spend a large percentage of time meeting not only with executives of companies in which they’re interested, but also with those companies’ suppliers, vendors and competitors.

http://global.vanguard.com/international/hIndEN/research/USOppEN.html

[orwell]

2. Drop in the Bucket

There goes today's lunch money...

O

[Wickerman]

3. In other words, Bill Gates gets a parking ticket

Wealthiest man in the world wouldn't feel it - and his company won't be affected enough by a fine this size (comparatively) to have any impact in day to day operations - or methodology.

[classics]

4. Mr Gates response:

Would a personal check be ok?

[denverbill]

5. Put that in terms I can understand.

Assuming Gates is worth $40 billion, $800,000 to him is the equivalent of $3.60 to me. And that's valuing my net worth on the high end.

[DieboldMustDie]

6. Gee! That's about 0.002% of his net worth.

That's rough. ;)

[Yavin4]

7. He'll Have To Stop by an ATM

Hate to be behind him in line when he makes that withdrawal.

[TroglodyteScholar]

8. You would think...

...that Gates would be expecting some scrutiny...seeing as how he's so very very very very very very rich.

And this is one of the smartest guys in the nation? Hm.

[nolabels]

9. What is funny is there was probably no intent involved on Gate's part

I am no fan of Gates, but it sounds like some people are trying to make a name for themselves or the justice department needs some fresh blood to make it look like they are doing something. He probably didn't even know he did it till they charged him

[mac56]

10. He's got that much in a dish on top of his dresser

or between the cushions of his sofa.

[Gothmog]

11. Oops

It is hard to violate the Hart Scott Rodino Antitrust Improvments Act accidently. There is a lawyer someplace with egg on his face.

[devinsgram]

12. Pocket change

for Gates.