News Summary: EU opens Microsoft antitrust probe

NEW INVESTIGATION: The EU's executive body is opening a probe into whether Microsoft has kept the antitrust commitments it made in 2009. It warned that penalties for non-compliance would be "severe."

THE DISPUTE: Microsoft says that because of a technical error, it had "fallen short" of meeting its obligation to provide a screen letting users of Microsoft's Windows operating systems to select a browser other than Microsoft's Internet Explorer.

THE BIGGER PICTURE: The competitive landscape has changed greatly since then the commitments were made. Tech companies are now more concerned about Google's and Facebook's dominance than Microsoft's.