EU brings new gripe to Microsoft

The company acknowledged on Friday that it had received a statement of objections from the European Commission regarding its practice of bundling Internet Explorer with new copies of Windows.

Currently, the browser is shipped with the operating system and set as the default web browser.

The company retained the right to bundle Internet Explorer when it agreed to a settlement with US authorities as part of its landmark 2002 anti-trust settlement.

However, no such deal was ever reached in Europe, and the Commission still believes that the practice violates the EU's own competition laws. Microsoft said that it plans to respond to the EU's concerns within the next two months.

"We are committed to conducting our business in full compliance with European law. We are studying the Statement of Objections now." the company said in a statement.

The filing is the latest in what remains an ongoing anti-trust battle between Mcirosoft and the European Commission. The two sides have been in talks since 1998 over the company's business practices and its willingness to cooperate with other software vendors.

The most recent clash between the two sides came last year when the EU decided to fine the company €899 million for not giving other vendors adequate information on how to develop interoperable software for Windows.

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