Microsoft Responds to EU Antitrust Case
Microsoft has reportedly responded to the European Unions antitrust charges.
The hoopla was originally kicked off when companies behind competing browsers accused Microsoft of using the fact that the majority of computers ship with Windows to create a nice little browser monopoly for itself. The European Union issued a preliminary Statement of Objections in January, claiming the company’s practices "undermine product innovation and ultimately reduces consumer choice."
While Microsoft has said that the next version of its operating system will give users the ability to switch off Internet Explorer 8, it hasn’t stopped companies such as Google and Apple chiming in to complain about Microsoft's dominance in the browser market.
Reuters today reports that the Redmond company has responded to the EU’s antitrust charges and a Commission spokesman has said the response will be studied carefully.
Do you think Microsoft is guilty in this instance? Many of us can claim to have introduced one of our less tech-savvy friends to the joys of Firefox, a browser they had no idea existed because IE had come bundled with their PC. However, without Internet Explorer, we’d have had no way to download an alternative making it a catch 22 situation.
Personally while I know a good chunk of people are oblivious to the existance of different browsers I don't see why MS shouldn't include their browser since it's free. That is as long as they're not hindering people from using alternatives.
Back in the days when IE was in version 1.0 or didn's even exist, people would browse the web using Netscape Navigator, which the OS didn's come with, instead they mostly grabbed a copy from a magazine, or from a friend.
Now some people are lazy, some just don't have the time to find an alternative. If IE is good enough, they won't switch.
In spite of this, Firefox has steadily been capturing market share back from Microsoft (ironically IE captured its market share from Netscape, which is now, in some way, Mozilla - Netscape Navigator's engine codename).
This argument could go both ways, but ultimately I guess it could be easily solved: Microsoft could bundle a very basic Internet Explorer which could basically access Windows Update, the Microsoft site (for download of windows related programs), and finally a shared site, maintained and paid for by Microsoft and all other browser manufacturers interested in adding their name, with a brief description of each broswer, and a link to the respective download. The browser names would display in a random order, each time the page would load, so as to avoid having the discussion "who goes first".
I think this would solve the problem.
Why not the OEM's? Hell they already install a bunch of their own propriatary garbage. There isnt even anything in the OEM agreement that prevens you the OEM from doing so.
Dell disables Windows Gadgets and installs Googles instead as the default handeler. Acer installs that garbage bar of theirs, which does little more then screw with your boot time and mess with your networking.
So again, why is this being blamed on MS and not the companies who actually install, Package, Sell, and ship the products world wide?
That is pretty much the best solution available the majority of people are not tech savvy enough to go out and figure out which browser best meets there needs.
But I still feel this is going to be a attempt futility. Most companies will continue to use IE because there local Intranets are setup for it and there security policies are written for it since most companies will still be using it most people will feel most at easy with it and feel safer and more secure. You will have more people who will be happy to see the change but I have a feeling just as many if not more will be upset they will few this as just more bloat wear to windows. Windows is starting to become the new AOL. If you ever played with old AOL Software like ver. 8 it was a dream come true it was enjoyable to use it had just the right features for someone who wasn't really tech savvy but wanted a good browser. Then they started adding more and more features and look where they are now.
I feel the truly best solution for this issues is to have the ability to turn Microsoft's Internet Explorer completely off and have it removable so that if someone does choose to use a different browser they can do so with out having extra bloat on there PC. But I do think it should be up to the person to find there new browser seems like society today is becoming lazy not ever thing should be handed to us.
Microsoft: STOP DOING BUSINESS IN THE EU. Leave the marketplace all together.
So Apple can do it but not MS?
FAIL.
SO, i installed google chrome on it so she could see more of the web pages and less of the title bar and other junk. She is obliviously happy with it. However, I think that MS would have limited her satisfaction with the internet because it takes up more than 1/3rd of the screen...
Having choices is good, but since most people don't know they have one, they will just use whatever they have immediate access to. Why doesn't MS just install Chrome, Firefox, and Opera, (all told less than 100MB of data) and run the user through a selection wizard? Antitrust issues? Solved...
1. IE is artificially build in to the OS. This is the main reason why Windows is so susceptible for all kinds of attacks.
2. Because the #1 the Windows some time is crashing completely after IE crashes.
3. IE do not follow established Internet Protocols and as result forces all web sites to developed multiple versions of their sites. It is huge expanse and as result many of them a dropping the support for other browsers.
All three items are done by MS in order to establish monopoly over the Internet. Their strategy partially succeeded. They did the same thing with many other programs and technologies. Remember how many Fax programs was out there before MS included build-in FAX software. This time they got caught and they will pay the penalty imposed by the bureaucrats in EU.
They play dirty game now the going to be played dirty.
The fix is very simple, but for some reason MS is refusing to execute it:
1. Remove the IE from the core system and made it available as option program.
2. Make sure that IE complies with all Internet standards and if the current standard is not working for the new features create new open royalty-free standard that everyone can implement.
If they ever do that the Internet will be much better place then today. By the way MS is going to make good money on it, but of course not all the money will go in to their pockets.
It's not their job to help their competition - if the competition can't compete (assuming that MS isn't illegally trying to crush them *coughlikeappledoescough*), sucks to be them. Make a better product and people will switch to it.
MS did the right thing by allowing users to turn off IE. It doesn't hurt their product at all, and now it makes it the equivalent of Safari in OSX (included but not required), so other companies can't crab about it...
...although they probably will anyway. :\
If you're going to say Microsoft can't bundle IE with Windows, then you may as well make them remove all of the other GUI tools they include. We can just go back to using a command prompt until we finish evaluating the myriad of tools available so as to make a fair choice (¬_¬)
Tell your mother to press F11. Works on both Firefox and IE. I don't have Opera installed at the moment, but it should work too. Clutter problem solved
As to your final suggestion, I think it wouldn't work. Browsers are updated all the time, so the system needs to be dynamic. You want the browsers you use updated, not unnecessary updating clutter for those you don't. Moreover, by including the most popular ones, you'd kill monopoly, but end up with oligopoly. Some company would end up complaining. In this respect I think my suggestion is better.