4 ms·
... by bundling its browser software in with its operating system. I still don't understand why this is wrong. It's their os, let them do whatever they want wi
by arthurk 17y ago
... by bundling its browser software in with its operating system.
I still don't understand why this is wrong. It's their os, let them do whatever they want with it. There are other operating systems around. They don't need to use Windows.
- daleharvey 17y agoMy memory is pretty hazy, but wasnt it something to do with the fact they seperately charged for ie (while netscape was also non free).
- Luc 17y agoIf IE is bundled with the OS, their de facto monopoly in the OS market reduces innovation, competition and customer choice in the _browser_ market.
- petercooper 17y agoDoes the bundling of Command Prompt reduce innovation and competition in the command line client market? Does Windows Explorer reduce innovation and competition in the file browser market?
- Luc 17y agoThat could be argued. It's a shades of grey thing. Some things stand out as bundled more than others - especially those that are obviously not part of an OS, for which a market exists etc.
- access_denied 17y agouser of cli knows 'alternative package exists and can be installed for free' = true nearly 100% of the time; user of browser knows 'alternative ...';; returns "distinctions packages missing';
- petercooper 17y agoPerhaps in the 90s a Web browser would have not obviously been part of an OS, but nowadays it's one of the simplest, yet most used, applications going and it makes sense to bundle one with any desktop-based OS. Come to think of it, I can't think of any current desktop-based OS that doesn't come with a Web browser installed by default.. The whole anti-competition lawsuit over this stuff was based on early 2000s assumptions. It's time to forget all about it now and let MS get on with it.
- joel_feather 17y agoThere are several roads leading to rome, there is no need to use the highway.
- rgoddard 17y agoThe problem steams from the fact that when Microsoft first starting bundling IE with the Windows, they had a monopoly on the OS market. The used their monopoly to dominate the Browser market and this is what got them into trouble. Apple does not have this problem because they only have a small fraction of the overall market. Although in this point in time, I think the browser market has become competitive enough that people know of other choices and will make the effort to install them. A most people have come to expect that IE will be on the computer, and would be more annoyed if it did not, unless it came preinstalled with their browser of choice.