Microsoft, which will on Monday learn whether a top European Union court has annulled the landmark 2004 antitrust ruling against the US software developer, is warning technology rivals they should be careful what they wish for.

The developer suggests that other software and technology companies such as IBM, Google and Apple could be next in line should the European Commission decision be upheld. It argues that the legal reasoning applied by the Brussels watchdog may well be turned against some of the very companies that have supported the Commission’s case and trigger a broader crackdown on the industry.