Germany is monitoring Microsoft to thwart 'anti-competitive practices'

Germany plans to keep closer tabs on Microsoft to identify and "stop anti-competitive practices" that are not currently covered by the European Commission's Digital Markets Act (DMA), namely cloud computing and AI. The Bundeskartellamt began inspecting the US megacorp in March 2023 to determine whether it qualifies as a …

[Zippy´s Sausage Factory]

"Google claimed Microsoft charges four times more for customers to license on-premises software such as Windows Server in rival cloud infrastructure than with Azure"

Four times? Four times?

Wow, Microsoft's really been dropping their price differentials lately. I mean, compared to what they used to get away with...

[0laf]

Yup and the on prem license keys used to be on nails that needed driven directly into the eyes of the installers.

But if this put off on prem installations in favour of cloud then it was just a coincidence.

[elsergiovolador]

Monitoring

Germany is monitoring Microsoft to 'stop anti-competitive practices'

I think if they squint hard enough the Microsoft will see errors in their ways and correct their behaviour.

This shows Germany has vision. There is no need to do old school things like fining the business into extinction or imprisoning senior management.

[Anonymous Coward]

Do they really care?

With Germany's (and EU) attacks on free speech I'm surpirsed they care about fair play. But I guess the real competition is over power. The big tech corps have great power over public influence and with Musk's X promising free speech and minimal censorship governments are nervous, not to mention if the techs accumulate more power than them. Look at what came out over Twitter's and FB's direct links to US intelligence. The legislation trying to make social media responsible for the users - that was never done over phone calls or email, both can equally be used nefariously. I think they want to bring corporations to heel. That's correct if the governments were truly working in the interests of the people, but they are not.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Do they really care?

>Musk's X promising free speech and minimal censorship governments are nervous

Space Karen is a big fan of free speech as long as it is done by Trump and his MAGA mates and things he agrees with. Try tweeting "Cisgender" and see how quickly its blocked...

[Anonymous Coward]

Users already have to adapt their businesses to exist inside the MS ecosystem. The risks associated with sharepoint, onedrive and the "apparent" end of traditional network drives are blatantly obvious yet thousands of businesses lap this crap up because it's MS way or the Highway.

I think there are bunch of companies staring serious problems in the face. The MSPocalypse cannot come quickly enough.