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European regulators set to file antitrust suit against Microsoft

Updated Dec 19th, 2018 8:37PM EST
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Regulators in Europe are reportedly set to file an antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft (MSFT) related to the company’s failure to comply with a three-year-old ruling ordering it to offer users a choice of Web browsers on Windows PCs. An investigation into Microsoft’s breach of the order was opened this past July, and the company had previously acknowledged the violation last year. “The next step is to open a formal proceeding into the company’s breach of an agreement. We are working on this,” EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said on Thursday. “It should not be a long investigation because the company itself explicitly recognized its breach of the agreement.” Reuters reports that if the Redmond, Washington-based company is found guilty, it could face a fine of up to 10% of its global turnover. According to the report, Microsoft has already been fined more than $1.3 billion by European regulators over the past 10 years.

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Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 15 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.