The UK’s competition regulator has delayed its cloud market report by four months to conduct a more comprehensive investigation.
- The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) extended the deadline from April to August 2025 due to the complexity of the market issues.
- Google has launched a public criticism against Microsoft, alleging its software licensing practices limit competition.
- Amazon Web Services (AWS) supports Google’s statement, citing dissatisfaction with Microsoft’s market conduct.
- The CMA is focusing on the potential harm caused by major players like Microsoft and Amazon in the cloud sector.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has announced an extension of its report on the UK’s cloud market, now expected in August 2025 instead of the initial April deadline. This delay comes as the regulator seeks to explore deeper into various theories of harm associated with the market, indicating the complexity of issues at hand.
In a notable development, Google publicly criticized Microsoft, accusing the latter of implementing software licensing practices that significantly hinder customer choice within the UK cloud market. Google claims that these practices might ‘irreversibly tilt the market in Microsoft’s favor’ by creating technical barriers that restrict competition.
Amazon’s AWS echoed Google’s concerns, pointing to a history of customer dissatisfaction with Microsoft’s conduct in the cloud arena. AWS described Microsoft’s actions as unnecessarily restrictive and easily rectifiable, reinforcing calls for urgent intervention.
The CMA’s investigation comes amid growing worries that large firms like Amazon and Microsoft discourage the use of smaller cloud service providers through various inhibitive practices. Ofcom, the media regulator, has also pointed out issues such as high exit fees and interoperability barriers that complicate provider transitions.
Previous studies, including one from Ofcom, have highlighted the dominance of Amazon, Microsoft, and Google in the UK cloud market. Together, these three companies control a significant portion of market revenues, raising concerns about market fairness and competition.
The extended CMA investigation underscores the need to understand and address competitive practices in the UK cloud market.
