FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
December 14, 2007
Opera challenges IE for standards compliance
Microsoft looks to have another Europe-sized antitrust headache on its hands. Norwegian browser maker Opera has filed an antitrust complaint with the European Commission, accusing Microsoft of abusing its dominant position in the browser market by tying Internet Explorer to Windows and by not complying with W3C web standards when it comes to how IE renders pages.
"We are filing this complaint on behalf of all consumers who are tired of having a monopolist make choices for them," said Jon von Tetzchner, CEO of Opera, in a statement. "In addition to promoting the free choice of individual consumers, we are a champion of open Web standards and cross-platform innovation. We cannot rest until we've brought fair and equitable options to consumers worldwide."
Opera wants Microsoft to unbundle Internet Explorer or at least ship with multiple browsers. Since Opera is a small browser, with 1%-2% market share, the motivation behind this move is somewhat selfish. However, IE is well known for its shunning of the international browser standards offered by the World Wide Web Consortium.
