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Browserchoice

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Greetings

This is a question asked under reg.1049/2001

EU have filed and maintained an antitrust case against Microsoft , for abuse of market dominance[1], by forcings its browser (and media player) upon its users.

PCs and other computers with other operating systems, including open sourced Linux and Unix variants, may freely include any preselected browser.

Microsoft are now forced to present its users for a choice , thru the ballot [2],as a result of the dominance.

Apple sits on approximately 30% of smartphone market and over 40% of tablets, but does not inform EU citizens of the browserchoice.

I am not aware of any linux or unix distribution that informs either.

Shouldnt all citizens be informed of the right to select their browser ?

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Un...
[2] http://www.browserchoice.eu

Yours faithfully
Kenneth Storgaard
Denmark

Generaldirektion Wettbewerb

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Storgaard,

 

Thank you for the email of 10 December 2013, in which you express your
concerns regarding the display of a browser choice screen on Microsoft
Windows computers and in which you enquire about why the Commission has
not taken action against other vendors of PC or mobile operating systems
such as Apple, Linux or Unix for similar behaviour.

 

For the sake of clarification I should note that we do not consider your
email as a request for access to documents as it does not request access
to a specific document.

 

As you might be aware, Microsoft agreed in 2009 to provide their customers
with the option by means of a browser choice screen to install a web
browser other than Microsoft Internet Explorer. The Commission's
preliminary view in 2009 was that tying Internet Explorer ("IE") to
Windows distorted competition. The Commission was concerned with this
practice because it offered Microsoft an artificial distribution advantage
not related to the merits of its product on more than 90 per cent of
personal computers. In addition, in the Commission's preliminary view,
this tying hindered innovation and created false incentives for software
developers and content providers to design their products or web sites
primarily for IE. Providing consumers with the option to install an
alternative browser is important, as it results in more competition
between the software developers and stimulates innovation in this sector.
For more information about the 2009 commitments, I invite you to visit:
[1]http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-....

 

The European Commission is aware that other vendors of PC or mobile
operating systems might be bundling browsers with their operating systems.
The Commission is in particular aware of the bundling of Safari with iOS.
However, according to Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the
European Union (TFEU), purely unilateral behaviour of an undertaking, such
as the one you describe, violates European competition law only if that
undertaking enjoys a dominant position in the relevant market. On the
basis of the information available to the Commission, it appears that
there are several important competitors to the Apple, Linux or Unix
operating systems you refer to and that the vendors of those operating
systems do currently not hold a dominant position.

 

Feedback from critical citizens, like yourself, is a valuable source of
information which we take very seriously, and for which we would like to
thank you.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

BANASEVIC Nicholas
Head of Unit
 
European Commission
DG Competition – Unit C3

Antitrust - IT, Internet and Consumer electronics
office: MADO 27/069
B-1049 Brussels/Belgium

 

References

Visible links
1. http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-...

Wir sind nicht sicher, ob die letzte Antwort auf diese Anfrage Informationen enthält – »falls Sie Kenneth Storgard sind, bitte melden Sich an und lassen es uns wissen.