Microsoft in new EU Browser Offer

[R0M]

I tend to agree that it was a bad move by the EU, sure Microsoft are a bunch of overly aggressive anti-competitive whatevers that have the whole market cornered... but I don't think that making Windows 7 it support more than one browse out of the box was the way to fix that. I see that as being a pain to support if people get a choice but don't know what they are picking. As much as I love Firefox over IE, many users who will go down to the nearest electronics store and buy a new laptop that is underpowered for Windows 7 anyway just because its new. IE will do all the things they want.

 

I don't know what the solution is, fines don't seam to work because even $1,000,000,000 is pea-nuts to MS and they will happily pay that and do the wrong thing because they will make it back in months. But not making them support more than one browser... who is that helping?

[CyberNerd]

The EU are just upholding a law which is designed to protect us !

They are not just 'going after' microsoft. They do it to other (non-tech) companies as well.

 

I this case, there is clear legislation to prevent monopolies from exploiting the public.

EU/Competition/Article 82 of the EC Treaty (ex Article 86)

 

Any abuse by one or more undertakings of a dominant position within the common market or in a substantial part of it shall be prohibited as incompatible with the common market insofar as it may affect trade between Member States.

 

Such abuse may, in particular, consist in:

 

(a) directly or indirectly imposing unfair purchase or selling prices or other unfair trading conditions;

 

(b) limiting production, markets or technical development to the prejudice of consumers;

 

© applying dissimilar conditions to equivalent transactions with other trading parties, thereby placing them at a competitive disadvantage;

 

(d) making the conclusion of contracts subject to acceptance by the other parties of supplementary obligations which, by their nature or according to commercial usage, have no connection with the subject of such contracts.

 

 

When a complain was made against MS - the EU investigated and found:

 

The evidence gathered during the investigation leads the Commission to believe that the tying of Internet Explorer with Windows, which makes Internet Explorer available on 90% of the world's PCs, distorts competition on the merits between competing web browsers insofar as it provides Internet Explorer with an artificial distribution advantage which other web browsers are unable to match. The Commission is concerned that through the tying, Microsoft shields Internet Explorer from head to head competition with other browsers which is detrimental to the pace of product innovation and to the quality of products which consumers ultimately obtain. In addition, the Commission is concerned that the ubiquity of Internet Explorer creates artificial incentives for content providers and software developers to design websites or software primarily for Internet Explorer which ultimately risks undermining competition and innovation in the provision of services to consumers.

EUROPA - Press Releases - Antitrust: Commission confirms sending a Statement of Objections to Microsoft on the tying of Internet Explorer to Windows