A European trade group has filed a complaint with the European Commission against Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), alleging that the tech giant uses anti-competitive practices that are “irreparably damaging the European cloud ecosystem.”
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The complaint by the trade group Cloud Infrastructure Services Providers in Europe (CISPE) is related to Microsoft’s new contractual terms implemented on October 1, 2022, and certain other practices. It’s worth noting that e-commerce behemoth Amazon (AMZN) is also a member of CISPE.
Francisco Mingorance, Secretary General of CISPE, stated, “Leveraging its dominance in productivity software, Microsoft restricts choice and inflates costs as European customers look to move to the cloud, thus distorting Europe’s digital economy.”
CISPE believes that Microsoft misuses its dominant position in productivity software to push more European customers to its Azure cloud platform, much to the disadvantage of European rivals. Two CISPE members, French cloud provider OVHcloud and Italy-based Aruba, had already filed a separate complaint against Microsoft over competition concerns.
Is Microsoft a Buy, Sell, or Hold Right Now?
Microsoft scores a Strong Buy consensus rating backed by 24 Buys and three Holds. The average MSFT stock price target of $293.46 implies 28.2% upside potential.
