Microsoft agrees new Windows product name for Europe

Microsoft said today it has agreed with European Union antitrust regulators on a new name for Windows software sold in Europe.

Officials at the US software giant said they had accepted the European Union’s offer to call the European version of Windows sold without Media Player “Windows XP Home Edition N” – with “N” standing for “not with media player.”

Microsoft’s “XP Professional Edition” will also include the “N” for versions sold without the media player, which allows users to see video or hear audio downloads.

Microsoft’s top lawyer in Europe, Horacio Gutierrez, told The Associated Press his company had notified the EU head office of its decision to accept their name offer.

He added that the company had “some misgivings” about the new name, but decided in the end to cooperate.

“We fear it may cause confusion for consumers buying the product, but we will adopt the commission’s name in order to move forward and accelerate the pace of the implementation process.”

The agreement is part of talks between the EU and Microsoft to implement an EU fine against Microsoft last year, totalling a record 497 million euro (£344 million) after the EU ruled the company abusively wielded its Windows software monopoly to lock competitors out of the market.

The EU ordered Microsoft to offer consumers an MP-less version, compatible with other competitor software, such as Real Player, to allow consumers to decide which media player they wanted to use.