EU drops antitrust case against Microsoft



LONDON (CNN) -- The European Union said Wednesday it is dropping antitrust charges against Microsoft after the company agreed to give users the choice of other Web browsers with its Windows operating system.

Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500) will also allow computer manufacturers to install competing Web browsers, set them as the default browsers, and turn Microsoft's Internet Explorer off, the EU said in a statement.

"Millions of European consumers will benefit from this decision by having a free choice about which Web browser they use," Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes said in the statement. "Such choice will not only serve to improve people's experience of the Internet now, but also act as an incentive for Web browser companies to innovate and offer people better browsers in the future."

Microsoft agreed with the EU that over the next five years, it will give European users of Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7 a "choice screen" allowing them to choose which browsers they want to install in addition to, or instead of, Microsoft's Internet Explorer.

The competition commission sent a statement of objections to Microsoft in January, saying Microsoft was abusing its dominant position in the market through the tying of Internet Explorer to Windows.

They said it hindered innovation in the market and created artificial incentives for software developers and content providers to design their products or Web sites primarily for Internet Explorer. To top of page

Just the hot list include
Frontline troops push for solar energy
The U.S. Marines are testing renewable energy technologies like solar to reduce costs and casualties associated with fossil fuels. Play
25 Best Places to find rich singles
Looking for Mr. or Ms. Moneybags? Hunt down the perfect mate in these wealthy cities, which are brimming with unattached professionals. More
Fun festivals: Twins to mustard to pirates!
You'll see double in Twinsburg, Ohio, and Ketchup lovers should beware in Middleton, WI. Here's some of the best and strangest town festivals. Play
Index Last Change % Change
Dow 32,627.97 -234.33 -0.71%
Nasdaq 13,215.24 99.07 0.76%
S&P 500 3,913.10 -2.36 -0.06%
Treasuries 1.73 0.00 0.12%
Data as of 6:29am ET
Company Price Change % Change
Ford Motor Co 8.29 0.05 0.61%
Advanced Micro Devic... 54.59 0.70 1.30%
Cisco Systems Inc 47.49 -2.44 -4.89%
General Electric Co 13.00 -0.16 -1.22%
Kraft Heinz Co 27.84 -2.20 -7.32%
Data as of 2:44pm ET
Sponsors

Sections

Bankrupt toy retailer tells bankruptcy court it is looking at possibly reviving the Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us brands. More

Land O'Lakes CEO Beth Ford charts her career path, from her first job to becoming the first openly gay CEO at a Fortune 500 company in an interview with CNN's Boss Files. More

Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.