Right...free market, thats exactly what I thought when I heard the EU imposing fines plus forcing a company to include Competitor's Software.

How am i whining again? my opinion is that Microsoft can include whatever programs it pleases into the software that they developed. Any savvy internet user knows exactly how to download other browsers, they do not need a browser ballot during install/reinstall. For the rest, whom are the majority, they would prefer to use a browser that they are accustomed to anyways. I use 4 browsers, in fact Opera 10 beta 2 in my main browser, and I hardly ever use IE 8, only for the few rare sites that still require it. It has never bothered me that IE was included by default, what bothers me is some committee handing me a 1 billion dollar fine if I do not include competitor's products in my own software. It really boogles my mind, how the EU is able to get away with all this shit. Why is it that the rest of the world is content with so many products, but the EU makes up all this bat shit reasons for fining a company? I really doubt that it is for the benefit of the consumers in the EU, the consumers could care less, as many have protested in this forum or on various others. What it basically boils down to is MONEY for them. So in addition to targeting Microsoft, they have another 1 billion dollar lawsuit with Intel, go figure...(blah blah blah, same ole same ole)

Does anyone else think the whole affair sounds a lot like Communism? The EU needs to ensure that all companies operate on the same playing field, so they need to bring down a company to the other players level??? So when does it end? Can we expect yet more lawsuits to extort yet more money from companies? This whole whole situation stinks, and exposes the EU for the conniving money-grubbing whiners they are.