• by Laurie Sullivan  @lauriesullivan, November 15, 2024

The FTC will examine allegations that Microsoft abuses its market power in productivity software by imposing punitive licensing terms to prevent customers from moving data from its Azure cloud service to competitors’ platforms.

Google used the European Union's and U.S. Department of Justice's reasons for filing antitrust lawsuits against the company, Google wrote in a blog post. It wrote that Microsoft leverages its Windows software to lock customers into its Azure cloud services, preventing them from easily switching to alternatives.

Tactics being examined in the U.S. include the way Microsoft increases subscription fees for companies that want to leave. Reports suggest Microsoft charges steep exit fees and allegedly make its Office 365 products incompatible with rival clouds.

The allegations may have come from Google. Two of its executives alleged Microsoft is the only cloud provider to use these tactics, which have significantly harmed European companies and governments. 

"While Microsoft’s licensing practices apply to many enterprise products, Windows Server is central to the company’s strategy of locking customers into Azure," Google's post explained. "Windows Server is a must-have workhorse in many IT environments, serving as the backbone for applications, files, and services. And it has already added billions of dollars to Microsoft’s revenues."