|  | OFE supports Opera's complaint to EU over Microsoft
Open Forum Europe (OFE) is not surprised by the news that Opera, the Norwegian Internet browser company, has filed a complaint with the European Commission over some of Microsoft's business practices
Opera says Microsoft is abusing its dominant position by tying Internet Explorer to the Windows operating system and that it is hindering interoperability by not following commonly accepted Web standards.
OFE chief executive Graham Taylor said: “From its inception, OFE has encouraged the development and use of open standards and supported moves towards improving interoperability. The allegation that Microsoft fails to implement industry-accepted open Web standards, or that it systematically adds proprietary extensions in its plementations, is very serious.
Lock-in to proprietary solutions is arguably one of the single greatest inhibitors to an Open Europe, free from barriers to innovation and accessibility. Open standards need to be precisely that – open to all. They also need to be fully adopted without proprietary extensions”
Open Web standards allow developers to readily create web content and applications. This benefits consumers, companies and governments by increasing competition and choice. Ensuring free competition is perhaps especially important when it comes to browsers, as they have increasingly become much more than simple viewing tools.
It would not be the first time that a company has superficially collaborated in the process of developing community standards and then not adhering to those standards in its implementations. This has implications beyond the current complaint. Over the last year, OFE has become increasingly concerned about the behavior of Microsoft and Ecma in attempting to fast-track its Office Open XML specification (“OOXML” ) through the ISO system.
Graham Taylor said: “We know that Ecma and Microsoft are now engaged in resolving some of the technical issues raised in the previous stage of the process, but given the company's track record, there is real concern that Microsoft, the originator and primary author of OOXML, will delay and postpone implementing any such changes in its Office 2007 products. This will make the specification worthless as an international standard.” |
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