Two months before her term expires, Neelie Kroes, the European antitrust chief, is signaling that a settlement is within reach that could close one of the bitterest chapters of her tenure: the long-running case against Microsoft.
In recent weeks, European officials have been market-testing an unprecedented offer made by Microsoft in July that would give European computer users a choice of Web browsers when setting up the next version of its Windows operating system.
With the pace of negotiations accelerating, Ms. Kroes said in an interview Monday that she was eager to reach a deal. But she indicated that her legal team was carefully examining the fine print to make sure it meets all necessary conditions.
“I would be pleased if we could close that dossier,” Ms. Kroes said about her battle with Microsoft — a series of rulings that has resulted in EUR 1.2 billion, or $1.8 billion, in fines against the company since she took office in 2004.
But she said she wanted a solution that she could “present to the outside world” and that would enable her to tell consumers “that indeed competition is there.”
Ahead of a visit to the United States this week, Ms. Kroes also said she would discuss with her U.S. counterpart antitrust issues involving Google, another technology giant with a powerful market position.
And she underlined the importance of trans-Atlantic cooperation in creating the “transparent and predictable competition policy” which, she said, globalization requires.
Attempts over the years by the European Union and Microsoft to settle the previous case failed, resulting in a ruling against the company in 2004, upheld on appeal in 2007. Microsoft had also fought earlier attempts to open Windows to another competing browser, Netscape, in the United States.
This July, however, facing new charges in Europe, Microsoft offered to tweak Windows so that users of new…