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The European Union is on the case of Microsoft’s market monopoly in bundling its IE browser in Windows. This investigation has been going on since last January, after the commission received a complaint from Opera regarding Microsoft’s policy.

EU has notified Microsoft that it’s in violation of the region’s antitrust laws, and should refrain from loading Internet Explorer in Windows. EU’s statement is as follows:

The evidence gathered during the investigation leads the Commission to believe that the tying of Internet Explorer with Windows, which makes Internet Explorer available on 90 percent of the world’s PCs, distorts competition on the merits between competing web browsers insofar as it provides Internet Explorer with an artificial distribution advantage which other web browsers are unable to match.

The Commission is concerned that through the tying, Microsoft shields Internet Explorer from head to head competition with other browsers which is detrimental to the pace of product innovation and to the quality of products which consumers ultimately obtain.

In addition, the Commission is concerned that the ubiquity of Internet Explorer creates artificial incentives for content providers and software developers to design websites or software primarily for Internet Explorer which ultimately risks undermining competition and innovation in the provision of services to consumers.

A statement from Microsoft said that it is committed to carrying out business in accordance with the European laws, and is studying the ‘Statement of Objections’ to respond.