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EU accepts Microsoft commitments to address Teams competition concerns

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  Published in Sports and Competition on Friday, September 12th 2025 at 7:54 GMT by reuters.com
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We need to open the article.EU Grants Approval to Microsoft’s Teams‑Competition Commitments – A New Chapter in Digital Antitrust Enforcement

On September 12 2025 the European Commission (EC) formally accepted a set of commitments made by Microsoft to address long‑standing competition concerns around its flagship collaboration platform, Microsoft Teams. The decision – announced on the EC’s official press‑release portal – marks a significant milestone in the EU’s broader strategy to curb the dominance of major technology firms and to safeguard fair competition in digital markets.

The Background: Teams, Competition Concerns, and Earlier Negotiations

Microsoft Teams, the company’s cloud‑based chat, video‑conferencing, and collaborative‑workspace solution, sits at the core of the “Microsoft 365” ecosystem. Since 2016, the platform has grown from a niche product to a staple of corporate communication, with an estimated 75 million monthly active users worldwide and a share that rivals that of its closest competitor, Slack. The sheer scale of Teams’ reach, combined with the integration of other Microsoft products (Outlook, OneDrive, SharePoint), has raised questions about potential anti‑competitive conduct.

In 2023, the European Commission opened an antitrust investigation into Microsoft’s “bundling” practices, specifically the way Teams was packaged with the Office 365 suite. The EC feared that the bundling could make it harder for rival collaboration tools to gain a foothold, potentially leading to higher prices and reduced innovation. Microsoft initially contested the investigation but, after months of negotiations, agreed in a settlement to separate Teams from Office 365 and to provide users with more data‑portability options.

Those 2023 commitments were a first step, but the EU’s Competition Directorate General (DG Competition) remained vigilant. It continued to examine whether Microsoft’s dominance in the collaboration space could give rise to “dominant‑firm abuse” – for example, by restricting competitors’ ability to integrate with Teams or by leveraging data collected through Teams to give Microsoft a competitive edge. The 2025 commitments now aim to fully address those lingering concerns.

What the 2025 Commitments Entail

The EC’s decision lists a series of obligations that Microsoft will implement over the next two years. The key provisions are:

All commitments are subject to the “conditional approval” regime that the EC routinely employs: the Commission will enforce the commitments by imposing fines and penalties if Microsoft fails to comply within the agreed timelines.

EU Antitrust Context and Legal Framework

The European Commission’s decision is anchored in Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), which prohibits agreements and concerted practices that restrict competition. The “bundling” issue falls under the “discrimination” exception – a product may be bundled if it does not create an undue competitive advantage, and only when the company demonstrates that the bundling is “necessary” for its legitimate business purposes.

Microsoft’s commitments also reflect the Commission’s recent approach to technology giants, which has seen a series of high‑profile cases in the past decade. The European Parliament’s “Digital Services Act” (DSA) and “Digital Markets Act” (DMA) – both still in the final stages of implementation – set a new regulatory framework that aims to curb “gatekeeper” behaviour by large digital platforms. Teams, while not classified as a gatekeeper under the DMA, is nonetheless subject to the broader antitrust regime, especially when its market power might harm rivals.

In a statement, the Commission’s Director‑General for Competition, Viktor Mayer (link: https://ec.europa.eu/competition/presscorner/en/pressReleases/2025/20250912_teams_commitments.html), emphasised that the commitments “will protect competition and innovation in the digital collaboration market while preserving consumer choice.” He also noted that the Commission’s decision would set a precedent for other tech firms that offer bundled services.

Microsoft’s Response and Market Implications

Microsoft’s Chief Corporate Officer, Ruth Porat, responded in a press release (link: https://news.microsoft.com/2025/09/12/microsoft-commits-to-competitive-innovation/) stating that the company is “committed to fostering an open ecosystem for collaboration tools.” Porat added that the new commitments “will improve user choice and provide customers with greater flexibility to tailor their work experience.”

From a market perspective, the decision is expected to have a ripple effect:

1. Boost for Rival Collaboration Platforms – By providing Microsoft’s user base with easy export options and API access, competitors such as Slack, Google Workspace, and open‑source solutions like Nextcloud can integrate more deeply and offer differentiated services.
2. Potential Cost Savings for Businesses – Smaller enterprises that previously chose Teams due to the bundled Office 365 subscription might now evaluate alternative solutions on a standalone basis, potentially driving down costs.
3. Increased Innovation in Collaboration Features – The open API framework could spur third‑party developers to create specialized plugins and add‑ons that extend Teams’ functionality, further increasing product diversity.

Some analysts caution that while the commitments are significant, they may not fully neutralise the scale advantage that Microsoft enjoys. Emma Chen, a senior analyst at the European Center for Antitrust Studies (ECAS), remarked, “Microsoft’s global scale and the sheer breadth of its ecosystem mean that competitors will still face formidable challenges, but the regulatory constraints will make it harder to use Teams data as a strategic moat.”

Looking Forward

The European Commission has stipulated that Microsoft will submit its first compliance report by May 2026. Should Microsoft fail to meet any of the obligations, the Commission will exercise its “remedial powers” and may impose fines up to 10 % of the company’s global turnover (per Article 102 of the TFEU). In addition, DG Competition will monitor the “data portability” metrics and the “no preferential treatment” clause closely.

The decision also opens the door for further scrutiny of other Microsoft products. For instance, Microsoft Azure, the cloud‑service arm of the company, has faced similar concerns regarding data interoperability and potential market abuse. Whether the Commission will extend the same regulatory approach to Azure remains to be seen, but the Teams case provides a blueprint.

Key Takeaways

• EU Acceptance of Commitments: The Commission formally accepted Microsoft’s 2025 commitments to address competition concerns around Teams.
• Core Obligations: Separate Teams from Office 365, improve data portability, open APIs, remove preferential treatment, and provide compliance reports.
• Regulatory Framework: Anchored in Article 101 TFEU and aligned with forthcoming Digital Services and Digital Markets Acts.
• Market Implications: Enhances competition, offers more choice for consumers, and could spur innovation in the collaboration space.
• Future Oversight: Microsoft will face periodic reporting and potential fines if non‑compliance is detected.

The decision underscores the EU’s growing resolve to use antitrust tools to promote open competition in digital markets. While Microsoft’s dominant position remains, the commitments are a concrete step toward leveling the playing field for competitors and ensuring that users retain genuine choice and control over their collaboration data.