Google Pushes For Antitrust Action Against Microsoft’s UK Cloud Dominance: Report (Image: Unsplash)
Tech giant Google has reportedly urged Britain’s antitrust regulator to take action against Microsoft’s business practices in the cloud computing sector. According to a Reuters report, Google has claimed that Microsoft”s business practices have left rivals at a significant disadvantage.
In a letter submitted to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), Google alleged that the licensing practices of Microsoft have unfairly discouraged customers from using competitor services, even as a secondary provider alongside Azure. In the letter, which has been seen by Reuters, Google said that such practices directly harmed customers and were the only significant barrier to competition in Britain’s cloud computing market.
In October, the UK competition regulator launched a market investigation into the supply of public cloud infrastructure services in Britain, following a referral by Ofcom, the UK”s communication regulator. Amazon and Microsoft control around 60–70 percent of Britain”s cloud computing market. At the same time, Google, their closest competitor, holds only about 10 percent. There were serious concerns about potential anti-competitive behavior, considering the dominance of Amazon and Microsoft in the UK’s cloud computing sector.
According to Reuters, Google Cloud Vice President Amit Zavery severely criticized Microsoft’s practices. Amit Zavery also reportedly said that Google was committed to a multi-cloud approach, in which customers could move easily between providers based on their needs. “The problem we run into with Microsoft is that there”s no technical issue, but you have licensing restrictions which means we are now being prevented from competing,” Reuters quoted Amit Zavery as saying. Meanwhile, Google has made six recommendations to the CMA. This include mandating Microsoft to improve interoperability for customers using Azure and other cloud services and prohibiting it from withholding security updates from customers who switch services.
