Thursday it was reported that the technology giant Microsoft is formally being investigated by the European Commission over claims that it is unfairly bundling its Teams videoconferencing app with its Office software.
According to reports, Microsoft pulled up to €2.2-billion in EU antitrust fines in the previous decade, the fines are for breaching the EU competition rules, including tying two or more products together.
Next week, the EU Commission is set to open a formal probe into allegations that Microsoft is abusing its dominant position. The first investigation will date back to more than a decade according to the watchdog’s thinking said on Monday.
The investigation followed a complaint made by the Salesforce-owned workspace messaging app Slack in 2020 to Brussels. According to sources the commission may issue formal charges against Microsoft as early as September.
The EU competition enforcer said it was concerned that the tech giant may be abusing and defending its market position by restricting competition in the European communication and collaboration products market.
“Remote communication and collaboration tools like Teams have become indispensable for many businesses in Europe. We must therefore ensure that the markets for these products remain competitive, and companies are free to choose the products that best meet their needs,” EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager said in a statement.
Stéphanie Yon-Courtin, an MEP with the liberal Renew group and a former adviser to the French competition authority, called on the commission last week to step up pressure on Microsoft to make further concessions.
“Three years after the [Slack] complaint was lodged, Microsoft’s dominant position in the market has grown, while the complainant is still waiting for meaningful progress in this case,” she wrote, adding that Teams had amassed about 270mn users globally while Slack had about 20mn. At the time of the complaint, Slack, which has since been acquired by Salesforce, asked EU regulators to move fast “to ensure Microsoft cannot continue to illegally leverage its power from one market to another by bundling or tying products”.
A Spokesperson for Microsoft said the company will be co-operating with the European Commission.