The CMA is weighing whether to give Microsoft strategic market status, which would empower the regulator to act in matters involving cloud licensing, AI-focused productivity offerings, and security software. As the agency put it, "Microsoft's strength in business software comes from the barriers customers face when switching, limiting their choice and weakening the constraints of other software developers."
This review spans business software across productivity suites, operating systems and database management. That portfolio includes Word, Outlook and Copilot, which the CMA says are used by around 20 million people each month in the UK.
Earlier this year, the agency launched the probe in response to worries over Microsoft's dominance in business software.
This all lands three years after a bruising dispute over Microsoft's $69 billion Activision Blizzard Inc. deal. Separately, the watchdog is examining Microsoft's Azure and Amazon Web Services Inc. to bolster competition in cloud services, saying, "More can be done to address remaining barriers to switching between cloud providers and using multiple cloud services." According to an AWS spokesperson, the review recognizes steps AWS has taken to expand options and flexibility for customers in the UK.
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Microsoft said it does "not share the CMA's views in its proposed decision on business software solutions."
The CMA is evaluating whether Microsoft's bundling and integration of its security products limits customer choice, and it will look further at potential steps on software bundling and on expanding customer options, including regarding rival AI providers to Microsoft's Copilot.
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