It has not been possible for the European Commission to reach an agreement with Micorsoft over the bundling of Windows Media Player in versions of its desktop operating system.
Commissioner Mario Monti said in his statement a few minutes ago: “I would like to stress the constructive and co-operative spirit displayed by Microsoft in the last few weeks. I also want to acknowledge the high degree of professionalism of the members of the Microsoft team at all levels.”
The Commission is expected to meet next Wednesday to discuss next steps – it looks for certain that there’s a heft fine on the way to Microsoft’s European headquarters.