According to Reuters, EU regulators accepted a pledge by Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) to allow rival Internet browsers on its systems, ending a long antitrust dispute with the U.S. software maker.

Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes said millions of European consumers would benefit by being able to choose their browser and the decision would encourage web companies to innovate.

Microsoft will allow users to select from among 12 browsers including its own Internet Explorer, Mozilla’s Firefox, Apple’s Safari and Google’s Chrome on more than 100 million PCs from mid-March.

Douglas A. McIntyre