Microsoft May See $7.4B Antitrust Fine

InformationWeek: Microsoft could face fines as high as 10 percent of its annual revenue for failing to comply with the terms of an antitrust settlement with the European Commission (EC). As part of the agreement, the EC required Microsoft to insert a Browser Choice Screen (BCS) into European versions of Windows. The BCS allowed users to select any browser they wished as the default browser for the operating system. Although Microsoft did insert the BCS in many versions of its operating system, the Windows 7 Service Pack 1 did not include the BCS.

“We take compliance with our decisions very seriously, and I trusted the company’s reports were accurate,” said the EC’s Joaquin Almunia. “It seems that was not the case, so we have immediately taken action. If, following our investigation, the infringement is confirmed, Microsoft should expect sanctions.”

Microsoft released a statement saying, “While we have taken immediate steps to remedy this problem, we deeply regret that this error has occurred and we apologize for it.”