The company behind the popular Opera and Opera GX browsers is challenging Microsoft’s anticompetitive practices on its dominant Windows OS that deny Brazilian PC users freedom of choice and stifle competition. With this complaint Opera continues its global efforts to ensure that Microsoft’s worldwide practices do not prevent browsers from competing on the merits.
OSLO, Norway – July 29, 2025 – Opera (NASDAQ: OPRA), the Norway-based browser developer, today announced it has filed a formal complaint with Brazil’s competition authority, CADE, against Microsoft. The complaint alleges that Microsoft’s anti-competitive practices, which give an unfair advantage to its Edge browser, impede free and effective consumer choice on PCs, harming the digital marketplace.
Microsoft sets Edge as the exclusively pre-installed and default browser across Windows devices and deploys tactics that confuse users and make it artificially difficult for them to access and use alternative browsers. Microsoft’s tactics are unjustified, frustrating to users, and only getting more severe.
“Microsoft thwarts browser competition on Windows at every turn. First, browsers like Opera are locked out of important preinstallation opportunities. And then Microsoft frustrates users’ ability to download and use alternative browsers. If a person in Brazil wants to use a browser other than Edge on their Windows machine, they should be allowed to freely do so – without being actively obstructed or discouraged,” said Aaron McParlan, General Counsel at Opera.
The complaint to CADE is part of Opera’s ongoing efforts to guarantee consumers the fundamental right to choose their browser and for that choice to be respected. Elsewhere, Opera’s efforts include an action in the EU Courts that could lead to the designation of Edge as a gatekeeper service under the EU Digital Markets Act, given that it exceeds the Act’s numerical thresholds.
“The fight for digital freedom is global, and we are taking this step on behalf of the many millions of Brazilian users who are being denied genuine choice,” McParlan added. “Brazilians are very engaged and enthusiastic users of consumer tech products and they deserve fair access to the browser that best suits their needs. Microsoft’s manipulative tactics on Windows PCs are a disservice to Brazilian consumers and stifle innovation as well as competition on the merits.“
In its fight for user choice, Opera has filed a formal complaint with CADE arguing that Microsoft leverages its dominant position in the operating system (OS) and productivity software markets to give an unfair advantage to its own browser by strongly incentivizing major PC manufacturers to exclusively pre-install Edge on Windows across all devices that they supply. In addition, the complaint challenges Microsoft’s multiple manipulative design tactics or “dark patterns” that steer Windows PC users away from alternative browsers and towards Edge, and make it difficult for users to change defaults. For example:
- Microsoft deploys obtrusive banners and messages discouraging users from downloading alternative browsers at the very moment they are searching for those browsers on Edge.
- Microsoft ignores users’ default choices in critical moments, such as opening PDFs, accessing links in emails, and using the Windows Search bar, opening Edge instead.
The formal complaint to CADE is part of Opera’s efforts to allow browsers to compete on the merits of their product by removing artificial barriers and creating a level playing field, which benefits all Windows PC users and drives innovation across the entire market. Opera’s concerns are shared by many other alternative browsers.
This complaint, which concerns practices implemented by Microsoft globally, presents an opportunity for Brazil to be a leader on this international issue. Opera is asking CADE to investigate Microsoft’s practices and impose remedies to ensure fair competition that will benefit Brazilian internet users. These remedies include effectively allowing PC manufacturers to preload rival browsers and set them as the default browser, mandating a clear and unbiased browser choice screen for all Windows users in Brazil, and putting an end to manipulative design that obstructs consumer freedom.
About Opera
Opera is a user-centric and innovative software company focused on enabling the best possible internet browsing experience across all devices. Hundreds of millions use Opera web browsers for their unique and secure features on mobile phones and desktop computers. Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Oslo, Norway, Opera is a public company listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the ticker symbol OPRA. Download the Opera web browsers and other Opera products from opera.com. Learn more about Opera at investor.opera.com.