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Microsoft Agrees To EU Browser Ballot Screen
An anonymous reader sends in coverage from Ars Technica of Microsoft's capitulation to the EU, after European regulators requested that Redmond bundle multiple browsers on new PCs. "Microsoft has decided that the last thing it needs in this economy is some combination of the following: fines, legal bills, and a delay of Windows 7. It has offered to adopt the European Union's preferred solution for browser competition: a browser selector screen at startup."
Go down fighting!
The difference between theory and practice is that, in theory, there is no difference between theory and practice.
My guess is most people will still choose to use Internet Explorer, unless they already use Firefox/Chrome/Safari or whatever. People like what they're used to, even when it's crap. I try hard to convince people to stop using Internet Exploder but they always tell me they like it because it's what they know.
Good god. The whole thing is ridiculous in the first place, now you're going to measure the fucking icons?
Here's something I think is interesting but haven't heard mentioned. Since Google Chrome is a likely candidate for the "browser ballot" I can see a scenario such as this: Most people have no idea what a web browser is to begin with as evidenced by: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4MwTvtyrUQ Clearly many people think that "Google" is a browser rather than a search engine. This seems like a great way to exploit that percentage of the population by offering this "browser ballot". Many people will see "Google" and think "Oh! That's what I normally use. I'll choose that" Thoughts?
My odds are that Microsoft will go with a "butterfly ballot" style and convince them to either install IE or Pat Buchanan.
European regulators requested that Redmond bundle multiple browsers on new PCs
Excuse me? I can understand requesting IE to be unbundled, but telling MS to bundle other browsers is just stupid. Let the OEMs do that. I hope the summary isn't having a rare moment of accuracy.
Easy solution: let's rename Firefox. I suggest Porn.
Someone on another forum brought this up. Microsoft should offer a list of about 100 browsers in the EU version of Windows. Literally 100. Put IE first and then put the rest in random order.
Then tell the EU to put that in their pipes and smoke on it.
If I was them (and I'm a nice person, so this comment is written purely as an exercise in evil :) I'd do it like they so the search provider option:
Choose your internet browser:
1. Microsoft Internet Explorer, optimised for Windows 7 (tm). Microsoft recommends IE8 for super-fast and safe internet surfing.
2. A different browser. Note that Microsoft corporation has no control over other browser's safety, speed or features. Packages listed may not be as suitable for Windows 7 (tm) as other browsers, users may use one of these at their own risk.
option 2 takes you to a list of alternatives, with another option to go with IE8 (of course)
You do realize that if they pull out of Europe then Europe will have little choice but to move to alternative OSs right?
The last thing that Microsoft wants to do is push a large market to (possibly free) alternatives.
Who gets to decide which browsers are included in this "ballot screen"? Based on what criteria?
If it's simply going to be the top 5 or whatever based on current market share then this is simply cementing the status quo rather than helping competition and innovation, and if any any every browser gets a look in then what's to stop SuperSpywareBrowser2009 from appearing in the choices?
Seriously, Microsoft should just pull out of an economy of $18.394 trillion GDP? While in the meantime, the governments involved would most likely invoke the "national security" clauses in copyright treaties to allow piracy of Windows and Office, whilst simultaneously launching accelerated projects to switch to Linux asap? What do you think this would do to the MS stock price? And why should any corporation have the right to violate the laws of democratic nations anyway? Microsoft is not the only corporation to have been fined by the E.U.
I'd mod you up if I had points, I don't really get it either. It's a good thing if anti-competetive behaviour is punished but the whole browser story really is beating a dead horse. The EU is trailing reality by a few years again, just like when they forced Microsoft to release a Windows-N without Windows Media Player. All the poisoning Microsoft could have done to the market when it comes to media players is already in the past. There really isn't anything stopping you from installing alternate media players or browsers in WIndows, forcing file associations or whatever. As much as I'd love to see the world move away from Windows and Microsoft, I really don't see the point in making their life hard over media players or browsers right now.
I expect the EU to be fining Microsoft for deliberately screwing up standardization of office document formats... In 2020...
Actually, looking at what they do with IE8, I think that you're almost right. To be accurate, what (IMO) is most likely is that when you install 7 you'll get a dialog box that says something like:
They'll make option 2 intimidating and a total PITA that most people will pick option 1 (which, of course, installs ie8.)
> "OK, Joe...which engine do you want in your new Chevy? A Chevy, Ford, Toyota, Chrysler, Nissan, or Honda engine?"
If Chevy had 90% of the market, were declared a damaging, predatory monopoly, and you could load a new engine as easily as a browser...
sure, why not?
Microsoft Porn explorer: Where even looking can get you infected.
Mozilla PornFox: For furries
Google Chrome & latex: BSDM
Opera: It's not porn, it's art.
Apple Safari: Gay and transsexual.
SeaMonkey: Watersports
AOL Explorer: MILFs
Dillo: Masturbation
Netscape Porn Navigator: Necrophilia.
i dont think you get the point of antitrust legislation. It is not to set standards for all companies, it is to prevent massive companies from abusing their advantage to stifle competition. small companies are allowed to do pretty much whatever the hell they want, as simple market forces will determine their success. however, companies with a large enough market share gain the ability to control their own market forces and destroy all competition, hence the need for antitrust legislation to level the playing field back out. the reason the EU does not require Apple, Google, or KDE to do the same is simple, those companies don't have a monopoly on the OS market.
Internet Explorer
Yeratu
Swallow
Tires
I made these up of course, but to your average user, that's exactly what they'll see when they see:
Internet Explorer
Firefox
Opera
Chrome
What browser do you think they will choose? Hmmmm?
Nope. And it's really quite simple to understand why.
Microsoft, according to the EU findings (so whether we agree or not is moot), is a monopoly. That means they get to play by different rules to ensure that the free market continues to exist despite the monopoly. In the past, the US has forced companies to break up to break the monopoly, so forcing a browser choice seems relatively minor.
Further, as a deterrent to further illegal actions (which, again, are only illegal because they're a monopoly - different rules and all that), there must be some sort of punishment. To be honest, forcing this seems like a hand-slap more than a punishment: the horse has already left the barn, why are they locking it now?
Should Apple or Ubuntu ever manage to get an effective monopoly, then the same rules would apply to them. In the meantime, these rules only apply to Microsoft.
Google is, so Apple and so does Intel
Note that having a monopoly is not illegal - abusing it is. The fines and other actions taken against different companies reflect the extent to which they abused monopolies.
MS aren't a successful merkin company. This is a successful merkin company.
== Jez ==
Do you miss Firefox? Try Pale Moon.
Oh yes, bleeding-edge W3C specs. Like CSS level 2, which was released in... 1998! Yes, I'm aware of CSS 2.1. I'm aware MS supposedly supports it. Yet 99% of the time, IE (in its various incarnations, this includes IE8 as well) is the only browser that gives me headaches when developing cross-browser sites. I really wish it would die a already.