Microsoft in talks with CISPE to address EU antitrust complaint

Microsoft is engaged in discussions with CISPE in an effort to address the European Union antitrust complaint concerning its cloud computing licensing practices, according to a statement by the trade group on Wednesday.

Negotiating a resolution directly with CISPE may assist Microsoft in avoiding a potential lengthy investigation by EU authorities, potentially resulting in fines and mandatory changes to its business practices.

CISPE, representing Amazon and 26 small EU cloud providers, lodged a complaint with the European Commission in late 2022, alleging that Microsoft's revised contractual terms implemented on October 1st were detrimental to Europe's cloud computing ecosystem.

Microsoft modified its licensing terms in mid-2022 following complaints from competitors in several European countries, including Germany, Italy, Denmark, and France, which were escalated to the EU competition watchdog. Notably, Amazon, Google, Alibaba, and Microsoft's own cloud services were unaffected by these changes.

Confirming the discussions with Microsoft, CISPE stated that both parties are exploring potential remedies to address ongoing concerns regarding unfair software licensing for cloud infrastructure providers and their customers in Europe. However, CISPE emphasised the need for substantial progress by the first quarter of 2024.

While Microsoft has adopted a more collaborative approach with regulators in recent years, with a spokesperson expressing the company's commitment to resolving concerns raised by European cloud providers, specific details of the discussions were not disclosed.

The outcome of these discussions remains uncertain, with CISPE highlighting the importance of Microsoft ending its unfair software licensing practices to achieve a swift and effective resolution.