Computers in the European Union should be sold without a bundled operating system, according to the Globalisation Institute, a Brussels-based free-market think tank. In a submission to the European Commission, the Institute says that the bundling of Microsoft Windows with computers is not in the public interest, and prevents meaningful competition in the operating system market.

The submission comes a week after European Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes called for "a significant drop in market share" for Microsoft Windows. On 17 September, the Commission won a ruling supporting its antitrust action against Microsoft in the European Court of First Instance.

The Institute argues that cheaper competitors are unable to benefit from their lower cost because consumers have already been forced to buy Windows. Windows' dominant position both has slowed technical improvements and prevented new alternatives entering from the marketplace.

Operating systems, it says, are not a natural monopoly, requiring just one supplier. Instead, in a competitive market, there would be a broad compatibility between different supplier's products. "Competition would encourage open standards and interoperability as vendors would, for competitive reasons, want their products to interact with other vendors' products," the submission says.

According to Alex Singleton, the submission's author, "For two decades, Microsoft has enjoyed monopolistic power in the operating system market. We are calling for the European Commission to liberalise the market and let consumers benefit from cheaper prices, greater competition and more innovation."

The submission can be downloaded from here. [3]

About the Globalisation Institute

The Globalisation Institute is a think tank based 30 metres from the European Commission's headquarters in Brussels. It develops practical, enterprise-based policies, aimed at making the EU and the wider world better able to compete in the global economy. Media appearances have included the BBC's Newsnight and Today programme, Al Jazeera, Sky News, CNN, CNBC, the World Service and many others.