...I would be demanding this to the EU right now:
I think the EU got things the other way around this time. I don't think the EU should force people to make a choice of browser, specially taking into account that the web browsers choice should not matter as long as they respect standards. If IE does not respect standards, Microsoft should be punished for not respecting them. Let's face it, most people will choose based on which icon they think is the prettier, and honestly, I don't expect them to have a well informed choice, I think they shouldn't have to choose, the choice shouldn't matter. Obviously, the browser vendors do not care much if this is not the right approach as the ones pushing hard will benefit from getting a higher market and becoming part of an oligopoly.
The misconception here is that the so called ballot only fixes a symptom of a deeper and more important problem. The real problem here is Microsoft's monopoly over the consumer computing market, and the root cause of that monopoly is their draconian deals with the OEMs. I don't even have the choice to buy a Windows-less laptop, let alone a Linux preloaded one.
The EU should act immediately on that situation, and it is outrageos that it allows it while at the same time, they put so much energy in deciding what applications goes inside of Microsoft's own product.
I'm against this, because I think it totally goes against good principles when it comes to designing a good user experience for a product and I somewhat illustrate that with the picture above. By the way, who chooses which browsers goes there? Based on which criteria? How can the EU citizens revise that process?
I'm against the EU having the power to decide which apps or user workflow goes in a software product, I find it outrageous on Windows, I would find it outrageous in Mac OS X and I would find it outrageous in a Linux distribution.
IE embedded in every copy on Windows is not the problem a copy of Windows embedded with every single computer we buy is.
(well, and maybe IE's total lack of respect for web standards up to some extend too)
How about this ballot for a real change:
