Quoting goblinsdoitall:

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If you want to try the future features of everyother browser today check here

Fixed 

Sounds a lot like what NetScape tried to do several years ago! 

Quoting whispering:

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You cant deside what browser to use, IE is forced on all computers... On linux you can get rid of Firefox.

Windows 7 has been designed all along to allow you to uninstall IE, which is what made it easy for Microsoft to create a revised European-only version of Windows 7 that won't include the browser. Yet neither of these options are good enough for Opera.

Quoting whispering:

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(I just quickly read it through, so correct me if i'm wrong)

Opera is not demanding anything... You cant deside what browser to use, IE is forced on all computers. Opera wants to change that, not force MicroSoft to advertice THEIR browser.

Opera is the one that brought the antitrust complaint against Microsoft in the first place. And now when, as a result of that antitrust case, Microsoft has agreed to remove IE from Windows 7 in Europe, Opera says that that is not enough. That Microsoft should offer the "ballot-screen approach, which will give users a genuine choice."

In this Q&A they noted that they included this idea in their original complaint: "you could add more browsers, to give consumers a real choice between browsers, you put them in front of their eyeballs."

So yes, I would definitely say that they're calling for Microsoft to advertise Opera and other browsers, by including them with the OS. It's a ludicrous idea. With an 80% marketshare of the MP3 player market, Apple's iPod blows away
the market share of IE in the browser market (66%) and it is almost as dominating as Windows is in the OS
market (88%). Yet I don't see anyone arguing that Apple should start including "Have you considered a Zune?" stickers on their iPod boxes, or removing iTunes from OS X.

KM

To this day, I still run into websites that do not render properly when I use Firefox.

It is highly unlikely that the owners of these sites are conspiring with Microsoft to undermine Firefox and force people to use IE.

It is much more likely that they simply coded the website based on what they knew (or don't know, depending on your point of view).  I have no problem with MS bundling whatever they want to into their operating system.

Everyone still has the option to use it or some other product of their choice.

Perhaps we should ban automakers from bundling engines in their cars so that consumers will have the option of installing the brand of their choice. 

.

Quoting ya_shin:

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You can run the Acid3 test to see how closely your briwser follows the standards.

Last time I tested I saw IE at approx. 20%, Firefox at 70% and Safari at 100%. I would be interested to see how Opera handles it.

Just tested it with Opera 9.63 and got 85%

KM

Quoting Astrakan:

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Just tested it with Opera 9.63 and got 85%

KM

Opera 9.64 has been out might want to update. Plus from what I have read 10 beta is at 90% on the acid test.

Quoting bob9000:

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a better analogy might be to ban them from including an audio device so that the consumer can choose whatever make/model and features they would prefer. I don't see governments meddling in that regard anytime soon so its a little silly for them to be up in arms about anything as trivial as a web-browser.

I agree that's a much better analogy - the one hal gave could be compared to exchanging the kernel of your operating system...

What the European Commission intervention is about is fairness of competition in the marketplace, and there's nothing silly or trivial about that.  Over here we see EC inteventions in that area quite regularly and for a variety of reasons, including also national subsidies favouring national industries over foreign industries. Such subsidies are not allowed by European law, and rightfully so.