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BRUSSELS (Reuters)—A small Norwegian maker of Web
browsers, backed by an industry coalition, has filed the first
complaint against Microsoft to the European Commission since
the software giant lost a landmark antitrust case earlier this
year.
Opera Software said it has complained that Microsoft Corp
illegally ties its Web browser, Internet Explorer, to
its dominant Windows operating system.
Microsoft is also "hindering interoperability by not
following accepted Web standards," the company said.
Both make it difficult for Opera to compete, it said.
Commission spokesman Jonathan Todd confirmed that the EU
executive had received the complaint, which comes after a
September 17 EU Court of First Instance ruling that upheld a
2004 European Commission decision against the company on
antitrust grounds. Todd said the complaint would be studied
carefully.
Opera is a member of the European Committee for
Interoperable Systems (ECIS), a long-time opponent of
Microsoft, and ECIS issued a statement critical of the software
giant.
"By tying its Internet Explorer product to its monopoly
Windows operating system and refusing to faithfully implement
industry accepted open standards, Microsoft deprives consumers
of a real choice in Internet browsers," ECIS lawyer Thomas
Vinje said in the statement.
Opera's complaint echoes a U.S. case from 1998, in which
the U.S. Justice Department won a major judgment against
Microsoft for competing illegally against another browser,
Netscape.
Opera asked the Commission to force Microsoft to unbundle
Internet Explorer. It also asked the Commission to require
Microsoft to follow "fundamental and open Web standards."
(Reporting by David Lawsky; Editing by Paul Bolding/Quentin
Bryar)
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