Microsoft now plans to issue the same version of Windows 7 in Europe as in the rest of the world, only with a ballot screen that allows users to choose a specific Web browser. European antitrust regulators have threatened to cause trouble for Microsoft if it includes Internet Explorer 8 in the release of its new operating system, prompting Microsoft to develop Windows 7 E, an edition without Internet Explorer.After months of wrestling with European antitrust regulators, Microsoft
has decided to issue the same version of Windows 7 in the European Union as in
the rest of the world.
Previously, Microsoft had intended to ship Windows 7 E, a separate EU
version of its upcoming operating system that would have lacked Internet
Explorer 8, in an attempt to appease EU regulators who were arguing that the
inclusion of the browser in the operating system violates antitrust laws. The
European version of Windows 7 would have been otherwise completely identical to
the one released worldwide and would have rolled out on Oct. 22 with the other
versions.
European manufacturers would have had to option of preinstalling Internet
Explorer 8 on machines before shipment, however, meaning that many users would
have never noticed the difference. And a potential snag existed for users
seeking to upgrade an existing system, as changing over to Windows 7 E from Windows
Vista would have left them browserless when their Vista
copy of Internet Explorer was wiped from the drive.
According to Microsoft, however, Windows 7 E has been eliminated in favor of
a new approach.
"We have now decided to alter that launch plan," Dave Heiner, vice
president and deputy general counsel for Microsoft, wrote in a statement.
"In the wake of last week's developments, as well as continuing feedback
on Windows 7 E that we have received from computer manufacturers and other
business partners, I'm pleased to report that we will ship the same version of
Windows 7 in Europe in October that we will ship in the
rest of the world."
Customers who purchase Windows 7 in the "European Economic Area"
will be presented with a "ballot screen" that allows them to choose
an alternate Web browser such as Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome. In the
sample screen provided by Microsoft, the rival browsers are given an equal
amount of space, with a clickable "Tell me more" option beneath the
logo for each.
"This consumer ballot screen may result in some users switching from IE
to other browsers," Heiner wrote. "It is unlikely to lead to any users
switching to IE, since the screen will not be presented to Windows users whose
default is Firefox, Safari, Chrome, Opera or any other browser."
Heiner cautioned, however, that the battle could be far from over.
"We recognize that there are still several steps ahead in the commission's
review of our proposal and that we are not done," he said. "We've
been open both with the commission and with our customers and partners that if
the ballot-screen proposal is not accepted for some reason, then we will have
to consider alternative paths, including the reintroduction of a Windows 7 E
version in Europe."
Such a move would likely irritate both manufacturers and Microsoft's partners.
Those groups' worries that Windows 7 E could cause consumer confusion are what led
Microsoft to kill that version of the operating system, according to Heiner.
Microsoft
has been anxious to settle its long-running antitrust issues with the European
Union. In July, a report from Bloomberg suggested that Microsoft was in
talks to wrap up the investigations by the time EU Competition Commissioner
Neelie Kroes steps down from office at the end of 2009.
Of the two antitrust cases in question, the first involves the installation
of Internet Explorer in Windows, while the second deals with the ability of
Microsoft Word and Excel to successfully interact with other applications.
Microsoft has previously been fined over 1.68 billion euros for antitrust
violations.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has met with
Kroes to iron out the issues between the EU and the software giant, but despite
years of talks there continue to be a few snags. With its latest move,
Microsoft seems to be making a large bet that the traditionally prickly
Commission will play to its tune.