Microsoft faces 1 billion lawsuit in UK for allegedly overcharging rival cloud firm's customers

[Cpvr]

• Microsoft was accused in a U.K. lawsuit filed Tuesday of unfairly overcharging customers of rival cloud companies including Amazon, Google and Alibaba Cloud.
• The lawsuit alleges U.K. businesses are forced to pay more to license Microsoft’s Windows Server software on rival firms’ clouds than its own Azure platform.
• U.K. firms are owed more than £1 billion in compensation from the anti-competitive practices, according to the lawsuit.

Microsoft Faces £1 Billion Lawsuit Over Alleged Overcharging for Rival Cloud Users

 

Microsoft is under fire in a new £1 billion ($1.27 billion) lawsuit filed in the UK, accusing the tech giant of unfairly inflating costs for businesses using competing cloud services like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform, and Alibaba Cloud.

 

The claim, led by competition lawyer Maria Luisa Stasi, argues that Microsoft charges higher licensing fees for its Windows Server software when used on rival cloud platforms, while offering discounted rates for its own Azure cloud service. This pricing model, the lawsuit alleges, coerces customers into using Azure, restricting competition in the growing cloud computing market.

 

“Microsoft is effectively penalizing UK businesses and organizations for choosing alternatives like AWS, Google, or Alibaba,” said Stasi, who is also head of law and policy at Article19, a digital rights advocacy group. “This lawsuit aims to hold Microsoft accountable, expose the extent of the overcharging, and return money to those unfairly impacted.”

 

The collective action, which automatically includes thousands of affected UK organizations unless they opt out, seeks compensation for damages allegedly caused by Microsoft’s practices.

 

The case highlights the growing tension in the cloud computing sector as dominant players compete for market share. Microsoft, which has a stronghold in server operating systems, faces allegations of leveraging its market position to disadvantage competitors and limit customer choice.

source: Cnbc

 

How do you see this case impacting the future of cloud computing competition? Could it lead to fairer pricing, or will it set a precedent for similar challenges against other tech giants?

[uptrendfinancialsignal]

I can't believe that Microsoft is in such a big trouble in a big lawsuit. This is not fair and UK businesses want over £1 billion in compensation payable to them. That's a staggering amount of money.