Google accuses Microsoft of anticompetitive practices in Azure cloud unit

Google, which has spent years defending itself against claims of monopolistic behaviour crossed the U.S. and Europe, is going nationalist with its ain ailment of anti-competitive practices by longtime rival Microsoft.

In a missive to the Federal Trade Commission connected Wednesday, Google alleged that Microsoft uses unfair licensing presumption to "lock successful clients" to exert power implicit the cloud-computing market.

The missive was sent successful effect to a wide FTC request for comment connected perchance anti-competitive acts successful the unreality industry. A spokesperson for the FTC declined to remark further.

Google singled retired Microsoft successful the complaint, arguing that done its ascendant Windows Server and Microsoft Offices products, the institution tin marque it hard for its monolithic roster of clients to usage thing but its Azure unreality infrastructure offering. Google described Microsoft's licensing restrictions arsenic a "complex web" that prevents businesses from diversifying their endeavor bundle vendors.

Google besides said that specified power represents a important nationalist information and cybersecurity risk. It highlighted successive cyberattacks involving Microsoft products, including the SolarWinds breach. Microsoft and Google some person progressive cybersecurity practices that respond to and probe cyber threats.

Google is nary alien to antitrust concerns. In January, the Justice Department filed its second antitrust lawsuit against Google successful conscionable implicit 2 years, targeting its advertizing business.

The department's earlier lawsuit, filed successful October 2020 nether the Trump administration, accused Google of utilizing monopoly powerfulness to chopped disconnected contention for net hunt done exclusionary agreements. That lawsuit is expected to spell to proceedings successful September.

Google besides faces 3 different antitrust lawsuits from ample groups of authorities attorneys general, including one focused connected its advertizing concern led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

In its FTC letter, Microsoft besides alleged that Oracle's practices are harmful to customers.

"With overly analyzable agreements that question to fastener successful clients to their ecosystems," Google said, companies similar Microsoft and Oracle "are not lone forcing customers toward a monolithic unreality exemplary but besides limiting choice, expanding costs for customers, and disrupting increasing and thriving integer ecosystems successful the U.S. and astir the world."

In the 1990s, Microsoft was progressive successful 1 of the astir notorious antitrust cases successful U.S. history. The institution was accused of utilizing its dominance successful desktop bundle to propulsion consumers to its net browser, sidesplitting disconnected contention from upstarts similar Netscape. The authorities won the case, yet forcing Microsoft to let PC makers to usage different company's browsers.

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