The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has filed a lawsuit against Microsoft for “deliberately deceive” to millions of consumers in the Price of Microsoft 365. The president of the ACCC harshly criticized Microsoft in a press conference, explaining that the regulator considered it a “very serious conduct” and what would I look for “a significant penalty”.
The story that explains this lawsuit begins when the software giant significantly increased the price of subscriptions of the Microsoft 365 online productivity suite (up to 45%) under the pretext of the inclusion of the AI assistant, Copilot. You already know that Microsoft is investing multimillion-dollar amounts in artificial intelligence technologies and wants to monetize them, although users and companies do not even remotely see their advantages. Let alone having to pay more for something that we simply do not see as necessary.
The price increase was widely criticized, but the ACCC’s lawsuit focuses on the lack of transparency in its implementation and the use of ‘dark patterns’ to ‘deceive’ consumers about available options. These types of patterns have been widely used by Microsoft to direct users toward options that will benefit their business interests.
Microsoft 365 price and dark patterns
The ACCC alleges that from October 31, 2024, Microsoft told subscribers to Microsoft 365 personal and family plans with auto-renewal enabled that in order to maintain their subscription they had to accept the Copilot integration and pay higher prices for your plan or, alternatively, cancel your subscription. But there was another, cheaper, hidden option:
“Following a detailed investigation, the ACCC alleges that Microsoft deliberately concealed this third option to preserve the previous cheaper plan and increase uptake of Copilot and the higher revenues derived from integrated AI plans.”says ACCC president Gina Cass-Gottlieb.
And, as we once explained to you in this practical, there was a way to access the cheapest plan without Copilotbut activating it required first canceling the subscription. Something that the vast majority of users, poorly informed and in need of the suite, did not do, subscribing to the most expensive plan even though they did not need the Copilot.
“We are concerned that Microsoft’s communications denied its customers the opportunity to make informed decisions about their subscription options, which included the ability to keep all the features of their existing plan without Copilot and at a lower price… we believe that many Microsoft 365 customers would have opted for the classic plan if they had known all the available options”they explain.
«Microsoft has a significant market share; Therefore, one could say that A large number of Australians have been misled into purchasing a more expensive subscription package than they would have wanted or needed«repress.
The result is a lawsuit for “deliberately deceive” to 2.7 million Australians that use the Microsoft suite. The regulator says it will seek precautionary measures, sanctions and reparations for consumers. And it has signs of prospering and expanding to other regions where Microsoft used the same strategy. A very clear example, another one, of the use of dark patterns to “deceive” consumers. And we put quotes in quotes because the cheap option existed, although hidden and the judges will have to sentence.
Microsoft says it is reviewing the ACCC’s complaints in detail and a spokesperson has issued a statement, which, to put it mildly, is laughable: “Consumer trust and transparency are top priorities for Microsoft”.
Finally, this month the company launched Microsoft 365 Premium, a new subscription that combines Copilot and Office at a cheaper price and adds AI functions for free to the basic plan. This measure is positive for suite users and clarifies the different plans. But it arrives late and the company will have to respond judicially for the actions mentioned, repeated for years, but unfortunately little known by uninformed users. And those who look for alternatives, there are, of excellent quality, open source and totally free.
