Google has taken the fight to Microsoft in the cloud market by filing an antitrust complaint with the European Commission. The complaint is aimed at Microsoft’s cloud platform Azure, which Google claims hinders European customers from switching to competitors’ cloud systems. According to Google, Azure locks customers in through the Windows server, leading to financial penalties for businesses seeking to use other cloud providers.
This is not the first time Microsoft has been scrutinized by EU antitrust authorities for alleged anticompetitive practices in the cloud market. In 2022, a complaint was filed by the Amazon-backed cloud lobby CISPE, but the case was dropped after a settlement was reached.
As the leading players in the cloud market, Amazon, Microsoft, and Google are engaged in fierce competition. Microsoft is also facing an antitrust probe by the European Commission for its communication and collaboration tool, Teams. If found guilty of dominance in the market, the company could face a substantial fine.
The European Commission and Microsoft are yet to respond to Google’s complaint. This article will be updated with their reactions.
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