Fri13
March 21st, 2010, 07:51 PM
Microsoft has started to send as a update the internet browser ballot in EU countries what gives windows users choice to choose the browser what gets installed and set as default in the windows when taking it first time in use.
The EU did the judgement because Microsoft has abused its dominant market position in operating system markets as leverage for internet browser markets and gained dominant market position there as well.
Last time 2007 EU did judge Microsoft to pay over billion about Windows mediaplayer position about using same abusive manner the dominant position in the the OS markets to leverage its mediaplayer. That judgement did not end up well. EU did not force MS to sell Edition N as the only edition but as one next to default ones. Microsoft did not manufacture more than 1780 Edition N boxes and 46% of those were sold to one french manufacturer.
Microsoft told that there is no need for Edition N. Microsoft just simple told every OEM to not market or preinstall Edition N and not to present it anywhere. So when people does not know about it, they can not demand it.
Now EU tried to be accurate not to make same mistake. But it succeeded only partially on its ruling.
The idea was that Microsoft need to set up a ballot for the user where user selects the browser what he wants. First page has 5 most used browsers in random order. The next 7 choices are on on second page.
First Microsoft did it by using the IE as the ballot engine. So IE is needed to be installed to get the ballot.
Secondly it tried to keep the IE logo on the window corner and taskbar so the user gets familiar icon what to click. Opera did not like that and they get removed.
Third the MS tried to make the list ordered by popularity. So it would place IE in first on the left. Mozilla did not like it and the order got randomized so every browser has the equal possibility to be shown.
The idea was that user gets a list where is the browser icon. Under it a short descreption of the browser and under them a link to Install or give more info about the browser.
If user clicks the more information, the IE gets opened and shown the browser own site about it. If user clicks Install, the installer gets downloaded from browser manufacturer server and installed and set as default.
The main purpose of this was that the windows would not have IE pre-installed by default. MS did try to first to deny that. MS did then make feature as forced that IE could be disabled by the way that some of the IE executables are moved to other directory as backup if user wanted to enable it again.
Now the IE is always installed, even if user choose another browser. The IE does not get disabled after choosing the alternative browser. Only its icons are hided in start-menu and desktop and panel. But every other application program can open it. Like games where you click a forum or support and it opens a IE, even you would use Opera, Safari or Firefox or another browser by default.
If EU would be wise at this time, it would have demanded that ballot being developed as own application program and not by using IE technologies. When user choose the IE to be his/her default browser, the application would then download the IE from MS site or ask to place the windows disk to drive and install it from there. Or at least then enable the IE functionality by moving the IE parts back from the backup directory.
And only then the IE would be functional browser.
The EU did the judgement because Microsoft has abused its dominant market position in operating system markets as leverage for internet browser markets and gained dominant market position there as well.
Last time 2007 EU did judge Microsoft to pay over billion about Windows mediaplayer position about using same abusive manner the dominant position in the the OS markets to leverage its mediaplayer. That judgement did not end up well. EU did not force MS to sell Edition N as the only edition but as one next to default ones. Microsoft did not manufacture more than 1780 Edition N boxes and 46% of those were sold to one french manufacturer.
Microsoft told that there is no need for Edition N. Microsoft just simple told every OEM to not market or preinstall Edition N and not to present it anywhere. So when people does not know about it, they can not demand it.
Now EU tried to be accurate not to make same mistake. But it succeeded only partially on its ruling.
The idea was that Microsoft need to set up a ballot for the user where user selects the browser what he wants. First page has 5 most used browsers in random order. The next 7 choices are on on second page.
First Microsoft did it by using the IE as the ballot engine. So IE is needed to be installed to get the ballot.
Secondly it tried to keep the IE logo on the window corner and taskbar so the user gets familiar icon what to click. Opera did not like that and they get removed.
Third the MS tried to make the list ordered by popularity. So it would place IE in first on the left. Mozilla did not like it and the order got randomized so every browser has the equal possibility to be shown.
The idea was that user gets a list where is the browser icon. Under it a short descreption of the browser and under them a link to Install or give more info about the browser.
If user clicks the more information, the IE gets opened and shown the browser own site about it. If user clicks Install, the installer gets downloaded from browser manufacturer server and installed and set as default.
The main purpose of this was that the windows would not have IE pre-installed by default. MS did try to first to deny that. MS did then make feature as forced that IE could be disabled by the way that some of the IE executables are moved to other directory as backup if user wanted to enable it again.
Now the IE is always installed, even if user choose another browser. The IE does not get disabled after choosing the alternative browser. Only its icons are hided in start-menu and desktop and panel. But every other application program can open it. Like games where you click a forum or support and it opens a IE, even you would use Opera, Safari or Firefox or another browser by default.
If EU would be wise at this time, it would have demanded that ballot being developed as own application program and not by using IE technologies. When user choose the IE to be his/her default browser, the application would then download the IE from MS site or ask to place the windows disk to drive and install it from there. Or at least then enable the IE functionality by moving the IE parts back from the backup directory.
And only then the IE would be functional browser.