Famous tech giant Microsoft has been under scrutiny by the European Union for some time now. The company is accused of unfairly profiting by integrating its Teams application with the world-renowned office suite Microsoft Office. A $6 billion fine looms on the horizon…
In recent years, the European Commission, which previously placed significant pressure on Google with similar allegations, has now set its sights on Microsoft. The Commission alleges that bundling Microsoft’s internal communication and collaboration platform Teams with its office suites leads to unfair competitive advantages.
Slack is among those calling for Microsoft to be fined
As you know, Microsoft’s next-generation office application, Office 365, can be purchased individually or for corporate use as a package. In either case, the Office 365 package includes the company’s popular communication app, Teams.
Competitors such as Slack argue that Microsoft is violating competition rules by preventing their applications from being freely chosen. As a result, serious fines are being sought against the company.
The European Commission has taken a firm stance on these serious complaints against Microsoft. After conducting preliminary investigations, the Commission sent an official statement of objections to the company and requested its defense.
What happens next?
There appear to be two paths ahead for Microsoft. The company must either defend itself against these allegations, which it has already denied, or face potential consequences if its defense is rejected by the Commission.
In such cases, the Commission, known for its strict enforcement, could impose fines up to 10% of Microsoft’s annual revenue. Considering Microsoft’s revenue last year was $62 billion, this could mean a massive fine of $6.2 billion for the company.
What are your thoughts on this investigation into Microsoft? Do you believe integrating Teams into office suites creates unfair competition? Share your views in the comments section below.
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