European antitrust regulators accused Microsoft of violating a 2009 agreement to give European Windows users a choice screen enabling them to easily choose their preferred web browser.
The software giant has violated its commitment to offer a choice of browsers in its operating system, Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said.
"Microsoft has failed to roll out the browser choice screen with its Windows 7 Service Pack 1, which was released in February 2011," the commission said in a statement. "From February 2011 until July 2012, millions of Windows users in the EU may not have seen the choice screen. Microsoft has acknowledged that the choice screen was not displayed during that period."
The case dates back to 2009 when the union suspected Microsoft of misusing its dominant market position to foist its Internet Explorer browser on users. Microsoft had then agreed to set up a "ballot screen" in the Windows PC operating system, from which consumers could easily choose their preferred internet browser. Concluded that the commitments would remedy its competition concerns, the commission then made the commitments legally binding on Microsoft in December 2009 with Article 9 of the Antitrust Regulation No 1/2003.
"We have raised issues with Microsoft relating to Windows 8," Almunia told reporters in Brussels on Wednesday. "If a user decides to set a rival browser as a default browser, there should not be an unnecessary warning in Windows or confirmations by the user, and the Internet Explorer icon should also be unpinned from the Start screen. We expect Microsoft to address these issues."
However, upon finding that the U.S.-based company has breached its commitments, the Commission had opened proceedings to investigate the potential non-compliance with the browser choice commitments on 16 July 2012. The commission said the company can be fined up to 10 percent of its total annual turnover if found guilty.
