Official: Microsoft unbundles Teams in Europe

Microsoft has blinked first in its dispute with the EU over bundling Teams with Microsoft 365 and Office 365, and will now allow European customers to buy the two software suites without it. It also pledged to make it easier for rival meeting tools to work with the two suites. The European Commission announced in July that it …

[Pascal Monett]

Regulatory pressure

The only thing that can keep unbridled capitalism in check, eh Ma ?

Capitalism has its good side, no argument there. But capitalism is the golden path to monopoly, and that is where somebody with some muscle needs to step in.

Money is all good and well, and everybody wants some, no argument there, but those who have too much soon fall to the Dark Side of considering they're the only ones who have the right to have some, and everyone else should be paying them for the privilege of using their someone-else's-server that falls over at random intervals.

The good old make-something-that-works-and-they-will-come is eternally replaced by make-something-you-can-lock-them-into.

That's where regulatory pressure needs to be applied.

Preferably with a SWAT team and some think time in a private cell.

[Someone Else]

Re: Regulatory pressure

"This concession by Microsoft shows that, when faced with regulatory pressure beaten about the head and shoulders with the hammer of a credible and severe threat that will likely cost them money, it can be persuaded to do the right thing," Secretary General Francisco Mingorance said in a statement sent to The Register.

There, FTFY

[druck]

Re: Regulatory pressure

Except it's not "the right thing", they are still massively subsidising the cost of Teams to keep the difference in the price of Office <365 so small all businesses will opt for the with Teams version.

It effectively caps price of any competing collaboration software or video conferencing platform at under €2 per user per month, and you aren't going to get anything for that, so Microsoft still wins.

[Anonymous Coward]

Be nice if they stopped bundling Teams (consumer) with Windows, which doesn't work/isn't compatible with Teams (business), resulting in there being two versions of Teams installed.

[xyz]

Does my head in having to go into task manager to kill processes just to get the other one to work. I mean how shite is that?

[43300]

I've got a proactive remediation (powershell scripts) running on Intune for all our W11 devices - checks regularly for fake-Teams and removes it if it finds it! This successfully defeats any of its attempts to reinstall itself!

[Number 39]

Would also be nice if the UI wasn't so dire. ICQ from 20 years ago was better. Telegram is better. Viber is better.I think I recall MSN messenger was better....

[cyberdemon]

Edge of the wedge

Now let's see them unbundle Edge too.. And stop spamming users who refuse it with obtrusive popups in Windows

[John Brown (no body)]

Re: Edge of the wedge

Well, there's already a case on record of MS being forced to unbundle a browser, so it should be relatively simple to just dust that off, make a few edits, and submit it :-)

[43300]

Re: Edge of the wedge

Fuck, no! That 'choose your browser' thing was a pain in the arse!

[43300]

Re: Edge of the wedge

From all the downvotes, do we have a lot of people on here who think the 'Browser Choice' thing was great?

Surely the sensible option is to make it much easier for those who want to change the default browser, and to use that default browser in all circumstances? Getting people who can barely use a computer and don't know what a browser is to choose one is just causing difficulties.

[Zippy´s Sausage Factory]

This, coming on the "we're not going to push Edge so hard in the EU" suggests Microsoft are getting very, very scared of anti-trust legislation again.

I think we're past the time regulators gave them an ultimatum: Windows, Office or Azure. Pick one, sell the other two - including all IP. And if you don't, we'll break you up our way.

[ayay]

What about the others?

No love for MS here, but Apple and Google need to be shaken for the same reasons too!

[Phones Sheridan]

Re: What about the others?

Don't forget Linux.... all these distro's ruled by 1 penguin! It's a monopoly I tell you!

[Bebu]

Re: What about the others?

Don't forget Linux.... all these distro's ruled by 1 penguin! It's a monopoly I tell you!

Although it says its a benevolent penguin even if appointed for life. :)

Perhaps apocryphal but did hear that Linus once saw some really agro' penguins in a zoo and appointed the mascot... probably nastly little buggers when on the turps.

[Anonymous Coward]

Proactive doesn't mean what you think it means.

Microsoft calls it proactive changes.

Maybe it's just me, but 'proactive' requires you to do something AHEAD of time, not after you have been told you're about to get a stiff whack on your fingers if you don't start behaving.

What a load of bull.

[43300]

Really, it's too late now - Teams has become sufficiently entrenched that this isn't going to dislodge it. Action would need to have been taken several years ago to be in with a chance.

[SaiMorphX]

UK! LMFAO ROFLCOPTER!!!

Apple is an almost 3 TRILLION dollar monopoly, Who all makes Apple clones? NO ONE!!! Everything about Apple is a closed ecosystem!

And they have gone after MS relentlessly like they can't stand knowing their Ex is having a moment of peace and happiness!

Apple and Sony, There is NOTHING Sony does that ISN'T an exclusive!!

They have reemed MS over trying to buy Activision Blizzard. They followed up the old requirement making all devices use USB instead of proprietary connecters, only this time they actually have to be specific since Apple didn't get the memo with the lighting cable, which the EU let go for ??? 15 years? and now will force USB C finally!!

Don't get me wrong, i have no love for MS, I have huge issues with their lack of support. I've had my hotmail email since before they owned hotmail, I had skype before they owned skype, but I don't have a"legacy account", so I can't get Bing rewards anymore! so yeah!

I Don't mind having Teams, they can throw a kitchen sink in if the price stays the same! it does suck that I need Teams "work and school" for my job, that was confusing at first! but work pays for that!

[43300]

There may well be things worth going after Apple for, but they don't have monopolies in the corporate market which they use as hooks to pull yet more business in, to the detriment of companies already working in that sphere. That's what this particular situation is about.