2 weeks ago
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will officially statesman a strategical marketplace position investigation into Microsoft this month. The statement will analyse whether nan bundling of Windows, Word, Excel, Teams, Copilot and related Office products is uncompetitive.
"Our purpose is to understand really these markets are developing, Microsoft's position wrong them and to see what, if any, targeted action whitethorn beryllium needed to guarantee UK organizations tin use from choice, invention and competitory prices," CMA Chief Executive Sarah Cardell said successful a statement published by Reuters.
We've launched a strategical marketplace position investigation into Microsoft's business package ecosystem and group retired specifications of what nan investigation will cover: https://t.co/ej7nuaJZkW pic.twitter.com/pDFMqWCdti
— Competition & Markets Authority (@CMAgovUK) May 14, 2026
She besides stressed nan value of nan investigation by noting that hundreds of thousands of UK residents usage business package and Microsoft products. The statement will return a look into nan company's unreality licensing practices. The CMA has stated that nan enquiry will reason by February. At that point, Microsoft could get slapped pinch a strategical marketplace label.
Microsoft says it's "committed to moving quickly and constructively with nan CMA to facilitate its reappraisal of nan business package market." A strategical marketplace nickname doesn't automatically presume wrongdoing, but will springiness nan CMA much leeway erstwhile conducting further interventions.
This isn't nan first clip nan statement has looked into Microsoft. The CMA launched an investigation successful 2023 into Microsoft's narration pinch OpenAI and different successful 2024 that looked into whether aliases not it was trying to debar merger scrutiny by recruiting unit from an AI institution called Inflection instead of buying it outright.
The institution has besides had caller ineligible issues successful nan states. The FTC launched investigations regarding those massive investments fixed to OpenAI and nan aforementioned Inflection debacle.
