On the lines of browser developers Mozilla and Opera, Google too is applying with European Union’s Competition Commission, seeking to offer assistance to the antitrust agency’s ongoing investigation proceedings against rival Microsoft.

EU’s commission is alleging that Microsoft has been defensive with regard to competition in the case of Internet Explorer (IE) by packaging it with Windows, thereby preventing the browser from gaining a mainstream footing. The list of objections against Microsoft was submitted by the commission in a last month statement.

Giving a slight hint about the actions that might be taken against Microsoft, the commission spokesman Jonathan Todd said it could be heavily fined; or compelled to allow users opt for alternate browsers for Windows.

While Opera filed the initial complaint with the commission in 2007-end, Mozilla was granted an “interested third party” status earlier this month. As such, Mozilla has been permitted to see the commission’s charge sheet against Microsoft; present its arguments to the regulators; and partake in a head-on encounter with Microsoft.

Talking about Google’s proposed involvement in the investigations, Sundar Pichai, the company’s VP of product management, said Google the decision stems from the seeming inclination towards Microsoft. Pichais said that the greatly “uncompetitive” browser market stalls innovations because “IE tied to Microsoft’s dominant computer operating system, gives it an unfair advantage over other browsers.” (Rupinder contributed to this report)