According to The Associated Press, the European Commission says it is getting close to making a deal with Microsoft that could end its long-standing antitrust case against the company by the end of the year.

Microsoft has modified its initial ballot screen proposal to make it more palatable to regulators and its competitors. ZDNet offers a screen shot of the newly modified ballot screen.

Both sides seemed to be pleased with the progress. Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes said she is "very hopeful" the new proposal gives "a choice between Internet Explorer and competing web browsers." V3.co.uk notes that Microsoft calls the decision to market test the proposal "a major step forward."