Microsoft
has unveiled a set of principles for future versions of its Windows operating
system that aim to ensure transparency and interoperability with competitors'
products.
The vow comes as Microsoft faces wide-ranging sanctions from the
European
Union for failing to meet interoperability requirements. The
European
Commission last week imposed a
€280m fine on
the software firm.
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Microsoft did not mention the ongoing dispute with the EU in a press release
announcing the "voluntary" programme.
The tenets were described a way to guarantee openness beyond November 2007,
when Microsoft's 2001 antitrust settlement with the
US
Department of Justice is set to expire.
But Matt Rosoff, senior analyst at
Directions
on Microsoft, told
vnunet.com that the
move is aimed in part at letting the EU know that Redmond is going to play fair
with Windows
Vista.
Microsoft general counsel Brad Smith said in a speech at the
National
Press Club in Washington: "Our goal is to be principled and transparent as
we develop new versions of Windows.
"These voluntary principles are intended to provide the industry and
consumers with the benefits of ongoing innovation, while creating and preserving
robust opportunities for competition.
"The principles incorporate and go beyond the provisions of the US antitrust
ruling."
The "principles" address developers, computer manufacturers and end users.
Microsoft has promised to structure its licences for manufacturers to allow them
to bundle either Microsoft or non-Microsoft products.
This would enable a manufacturer to bundle
Java
or the open source
Firefox browser, for
example, or set
Google as
the default search engine for
Internet
Explorer.
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