UK cloud market set to get stronger anti-competitive rules in clampdown on US giants

Date:
Thu, 21 Nov 2024 11:29:00 +0000

Description:
Britains Competition and Markets Authority is reportedly looking at investigating Microsoft, Amazon and Google over cloud dominance.

FULL STORY

The UKs Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is reportedly set to propose new measures to address anticompetitive business practices in the nations
cloud market.

Such measures would address the current dominance held by hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft and Google.

The investigation stems from a 2022 Ofcom report examining the dominance that these companies have in the UKs cloud sector the review was previously referred from the communications regulator to the CMA to address these concerns.

CMA could investigate Amazon, Microsoft, Googles dominance

The CMA reportedly has a provisional decision deadline of November to
December 2024, meaning that the hyperscalers could soon be facing even more regulatory pressure after what seems like months of endless investigations.

If it goes ahead with its investigation, the CMA would target issues like egress fees, unfair licensing fees, discounts for larger clients and interoperability issues that present technical difficulties for those looking to switch providers.

Remedies could include price caps, reduced technical barriers and banning agreements that encourage customers to commit to higher spending.

Microsoft could also be asked to charge the same for its productivity
software regardless of the cloud provider, something that could disrupt its existing model.

In a June 2024 report , the CMA said that it was in the early stages of
looking into potential remedies. The Authority declined to comment on the timing.

For the three hyperscalers, this wont be the first investigation that theyve faced in recent months over anticompetitive practices. Microsoft has been in the spotlight a lot over its cloud terms in Europe and the US. Just last week the FTC indicated that it would be investigating Microsoft over locking customers into its Azure cloud platform Amazon, Apple and Google are not exempt from similar pressures by the FTC either.

Via CNBC

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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/pro/uk-cloud-market-set-to-get-stronger-anti-competi tive-rules-in-clampdown-on-us-giants

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