UK competition authority proposes strategic market status for Microsoft's business software

The UK Competition and Markets Authority has proposed designating Microsoft with strategic market status in its business software ecosystem and opened a consultation. A final decision is due by the February 2027 statutory deadline; designation does not imply wrongdoing.

The CMA found Microsoft has a strong position in all five areas it examined — PC operating systems, productivity suites, security software, server operating systems and relational databases — reinforced by switching barriers and integration advantages. Its roadmap for possible interventions covers whether customers can freely choose AI tools other than Copilot, how Microsoft bundles security products, and whether licensing limits which cloud customers can deploy on.

On cloud, the CMA reports that Microsoft and AWS have removed data transfer fees for customers changing provider, cut fees for multi-cloud use, begun interconnecting data centres with rivals, and introduced a route to request interoperability. Next it will focus on identity and access management across clouds and portable architectures.