Microsoft proposed including a "ballot screen" that would make it easy for Windows 7 users to install a competing Web browser, set it as the default and disable Internet Explorer, the European Commission said in a . PC makers would also be able to install competing Web browsers and disable IE.

"The Commission welcomes this proposal, and will now investigate its practical effectiveness in terms of ensuring genuine consumer choice," it said.

The Commission raised concerns in January that Microsoft's practice of tying IE with Windows might be anticompetitive. Later, , it said that simply separating IE from Windows might not be sufficient to ensure competition.