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EU Says MS Must Offer Other Browsers; Now What?

Posted by kdawson on from the foot-in-the-door dept.

Glyn Moody writes "So the European Commission is going to require Microsoft to offer competitors' browsers with Windows. '...Microsoft will be obliged to design Windows in a way that allows users "to choose which competing web browser(s) instead of, or in addition to, Internet Explorer they want to install and which one they want to have as default..." [Microsoft] now has until mid-March to respond to the Commission, and might also ask for a hearing. Brussels will not adopt a final decision until it has received Microsoft's official reply.' But having the option to install Firefox, say, is useless unless people know what it is. The implication is that we need some kind of campaign to ensure that people understand the choices they will have. How can open source best exploit this latest EU decision?"

3 of 911 comments (clear)

  1. Sabotage, of course. by daemonenwind · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Mozilla should release a "Windows EU Compliance Edition".

    This thing should absolutely suck. Terribly slow page load times, grossly unstable.
    But totally standards compliant and able to pass acid3 with flying colors.

    Yeah, it'll take some creative coding to do. (if website = acid3.acidtests.org......)

    But when the rotten reviews come in, just respond, "Well, if Microsoft ever released those standards documents, and got compliant with what modern OSs do, this would have worked fine, like it does on Linux on this demonstrator".

    Then the EU will continue to spend its time trying to bend Microsoft over a table while ignoring copyright law reform, international banking panics, and anything else that could actually use attention.

  2. Re:This seems to completely miss the problem by msormune · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    EU does not care at all about the fucking browsers. They want to squeeze some money out of Microsoft, and the browser thing is a perfect tool for that. Microsoft ponies up, because it can afford it easily.

  3. Re:interesting times by N1AK · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    The problem isn't bundling. The problem is using an OS monopoly as leverage to foist an inferior Web browser on consumers.

    Bollocks. Some people want to hurt Microsoft, and are using the same weak excuse they always use to justify it. I have no issue with the idea that windows shouldn't be distributed with a browser, as long as all operating systems have to play by the same rules.

    Just so you know that I'm not a hypocrite: if Apple were in the same position, of having an OS monopoly and using it for nefarious purposes, I would equally support an EU decision against them.

    As you say you're not a hypocrite, why do you think Apple shouldn't be forced to unbundle safari? Surely it will encourage competition.