Microsoft has been accused of anti-competitive practices in the cloud market in a complaint filed by a Spanish startup association to the National Markets and Competition Commission in Spain.
The Asociación Española de Startups, which represents more than 700 startups in Spain, alleged that Microsoft has not only taken advantage of the dominant position in the markets for operating systems (Windows) and office automation or productivity software (Microsoft Office) to force the use of its Azure cloud, but they also impose artificial barriers that limit the ability of startups to compete fairly and competitively.
The group added that these practices include barriers to data portability or contractual conditions that restrict competition in software licenses. This would make it difficult or prevent the free choice of providers of these services, reducing the capacity for choice and flexibility that startups need to be able to be resilient, innovate and grow.
The association urged the Spanish antitrust regulator, known as Comisión Nacional de los Mercados y la Competencia, or CNMC, to launch an investigation and to take urgent measures to ensure a competitive market.
Last month, Microsoft said it would globally sell its chat and video app, Teams, separately from its Office product, months after the company had separated the two products in the EU as part of its efforts to avoid the region’s antitrust rules.
