Microsoft Concedes in European Antitrust Case

"Microsoft has given up its nine-year fight against antitrust regulators in Europe, saying today that it would not challenge a court judgment there and would share technical information with rivals on terms the software giant had long resisted.

European regulators and some software groups in Europe hailed the deal as a breakthrough that should open the door to freer competition, especially in the market for the server software that powers corporate data centers and the Internet."

"“This is a huge breakthrough,” said Georg Greve, president of the Free Software Foundation-Europe, a group that had challenged Microsoft’s practice of using confidential server protocols. “Microsoft is finally doing what the commission ordered it to do. This will level the playing field.”" -- Read more

I'd say it took them long enough (9 years), but it sure is good news.