Rival browsers say Microsoft’s Edge practices are unfair and should be subject to EU technical rules

BRUSSELS: Microsoft is giving its Edge web browser an unfair advantage and EU antitrust regulators should subject it to tough EU technical rules, three rival browsers and a group of web developers said in a letter to the European Commission.

The move by Vivaldi, Waterfox, Wavebox and Open Web Advocacy could support Norwegian browser company Opera, which sued the European Commission in July for exempting Edge from the Digital Markets Act (DMA).

The landmark DMA regulation lists do’s and don’ts for online services considered as gateways for businesses to reach end-users, with the aim of making it easier for consumers to choose services from different providers.

The companies and advocacy group said they support Opera’s challenge.

“The most important thing is that the Commission reconsiders its position,” they wrote in a letter dated September 17, seen by Reuters.

“Currently, unfair practices may persist in the Windows ecosystem regarding Edge, regardless of the selection screens available on mobile devices,” they said, pointing to Edge being set as the default browser on all Windows computers.

“No platform-agnostic browser can match Edge’s unmatched distribution advantage on Windows. Additionally, Edge is the most important gateway for consumers to download a standalone browser to their Windows PCs.”

The commission and Microsoft declined to comment. According to StatCounter, Edge’s global market share is just over 5 percent, while market leader Google Chrome is 66 percent.

Vivaldi, Waterfox, Wavebox and Open Web Advocacy also argued that pop-up messages on Edge mischaracterized features in competing browsers that differentiated them from Microsoft’s product.

The European Commission said in its February decision that it does not consider Edge to be a gatekeeper and that the DMA requires Microsoft to allow users to easily uninstall any apps.