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Microsoft Ready To Address EU Antitrust Concerns

Posted by Soulskill on from the twisting-their-arm dept.

An anonymous reader sends this quote from a Reuters report: "Software giant Microsoft is ready to introduce measures that would address the European Union's antitrust concerns about users' ability to chose between different browsers, European Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said on Saturday. EU antitrust regulators are investigating whether Microsoft blocks computer makers from installing rival web browsers on its upcoming Windows 8 operating system, following complaints from several companies. Almunia is in charge of antitrust enforcement at the European Commission. 'In my personal talks with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer he has given me assurances that they will comply immediately regardless of the conclusion of the anti trust probe,' Almunia said at an economic conference in northern Italy, adding that he considered the matter a 'very, very serious issue.'"

9 of 176 comments (clear)

  1. Think About This by arbiter1 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Apple's iOS blocks people from changing default browser off Safari, But MS gets sued and Fined for Even Including IE? How da hell does that work?

    1. Re:Think About This by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Apple *makes* their stuff.

      Microsoft is telling a third party what the third party can put on the machines they sell running windows.

      Think about the subtle difference.

    2. Re:Think About This by UnknowingFool · · Score: 3, Insightful

      If your memory is faulty, the problem wasn't that MS included IE for free with Windows. The problem was they strong-armed OEMs into not installing or using Netscape. Like hinting that their OEM prices would rise if they installed Netscape. As far as I know you can uninstall Safari though some of the libraries Safari uses are core OS X libraries and should not be removed. MS tied IE so deep into Windows that it could not be removed and can only be hidden. That's the difference.

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  2. Re:For the record by symbolset · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Nokia's destiny is to be a filing cabinet full of patent licenses in Bellevue, Wa managed by 6 paralegals and one part-time lawyer. This fate is sealed. The full cabinet to the left is marked "Sendo" and the empty cabinet to the right is marked "Adobe".

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  3. Re:Double standards by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Given that browser restrictions only apply to Win8 running on ARM, we're not talking about desktop OSes here, but rather tablets and such. Where there's no established monopoly as yet (but of all companies, Apple would be closest to having it, rather than MS).

  4. Re:Dear EU regulator: Secure Boot by arbiter1 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    So wouldn't the ipad be effected under this since apple does the same thing on their ARM device?

  5. The 'remedy' does nothing by SgtChaireBourne · · Score: 1, Insightful

    The so-called remedy, the 'Browser Ballot', does absolutely nothing about the original problem. The original complaint is that M$ is abusing its monopoly and bundling MSIE. So the 'Browser Ballot' even when it works does absolutely nothing about the presence of MSIE. Essentially it gives the users a choice of MSIE + another browser, but MSIE there like it or not and no choice. The press has completely dropped this issue. No surprise since so many are beholden to M$ in some way or another.

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  6. Re:Steve Ballmer he has given me assurances... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

    Poor old Ballmer can't catch a break.

    Even in his own Slashdot topic, he gets modded flamebait.

    "Linux is a cancer that attaches itself in an intellectual property sense to everything it touches. The way the license is written, if you use any open-source software, you have to make the rest of your software open source," Ballmer explained"

    http://www.theregister.co.uk/2001/06/02/ballmer_linux_is_a_cancer/

  7. Re:Does the EU do anything else than US bashing? by moronoxyd · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Does the EU have any other purpose than harassing US companies? This is 10+ year old news.

    Microsoft has a legally binding contract with the EU.
    It seems like Microsoft broke that contract.
    The EU investigates.
    Where exactly is the harassment?

    On a side note: The EU also investigates European companies in the same way if they break anti-trust laws. One example: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8140024.stm