At the end of 2002, the final ruling in the United States case against Microsoft was published, which could have ended with the company divided into two parts. More than two decades after that historic episode, the ghost of monopoly reappears on the scene. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) of the North American country has launched a far-reaching investigation into the Redmond company.
According to Bloomberg, the agency is looking to conduct an in-depth analysis of Microsoft’s business practices after several months of preliminary work. This is an investigation that will cover most of the products and services offered by those led by Satya Nadella, that is, software licenses, cloud computing offers, cybersecurity solutions and artificial intelligence platforms.
Microsoft under FTC scrutiny
The FTC, which enforces antitrust law and seeks to defend consumer rights, has sent Microsoft its hundreds-of-page complaint. The next step will be to meet with some of the technology giant’s competitors to obtain more information about the alleged illegal practices of the company. At least that is what the sources consulted by the aforementioned economic media point out.
They also explain that the lawsuit gained strength after Microsoft faced a series of cybersecurity problems. Those events raised concern given that the company is a major contractor for the federal government, so its products and services are present in multiple agencies, including the Department of Defense. Bloomberg says the FTC sees Microsoft as an example of problematic power.
Part of the research will focus on Azure Active Directory’s successor, Microsoft Entra ID, which authenticates users to cloud services. Another part will be focused on the license terms and cloud computing services. Apparently, the company’s practices in the aforementioned sectors make it difficult for rival authentication, cybersecurity and cloud computing companies to compete.
The investigation occurs under the leadership of Lina Khan at the head of the FTC. We are talking about a woman who during her tenure at the head of the agency confronted big technology companies, including Microsoft itself during the Activision Blizzard purchase agreement. Now, it is unclear whether he will remain in his position once Donald Trump takes control of the White House in January 2025.
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