UK's CMA to Investigate Microsoft's Bundling Practices

The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will officially begin a strategic market status investigation into Microsoft this month. The organization will examine whether the bundling of Windows, Word, Excel, Teams, Copilot and related Office products is uncompetitive.

"Our aim ​is to understand how these markets are developing, Microsoft's position within them and to consider ‌what, if ⁠any, targeted action may be needed to ensure UK organizations can benefit from choice, innovation and competitive prices," CMA Chief Executive Sarah Cardell said in a statement published by Reuters.

She also stressed the importance of the investigation by noting that hundreds of thousands of UK residents use business software and Microsoft products. The organization will take a look into the company's cloud licensing practices. The CMA has stated that the inquiry will conclude by February. At that point, Microsoft could get slapped with a strategic market label.

Microsoft says it's "committed to working quickly and constructively ​with the CMA to facilitate its review of the business software market." A strategic market designation doesn't automatically assume wrongdoing, but will give the CMA more leeway when conducting further interventions.

This isn't the first time the organization has looked into Microsoft. The CMA launched an investigation in 2023 into Microsoft's relationship with OpenAI and another in 2024 that looked into whether or not it was trying to avoid merger scrutiny by recruiting staff from an AI company called Inflection instead of buying it outright.