The CMA’s Fourth Strategic Market Status Case: Microsoft
The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has initiated its fourth Strategic Market Status investigation, this time focusing on Microsoft’s business software ecosystem. This comes after similar cases against Google search, Apple mobile, and Google mobile.
The scope of this probe is extensive, encompassing:
- Windows
- Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, etc.)
- Teams
- Copilot (the rapidly growing AI footprint)
- Server operating systems
- Database management systems
- Security software
With over 15 million commercial users in the UK across these products, sold to countless businesses and public sector buyers, the CMA is examining whether Microsoft utilizes its position to limit customer choice. The regulators are paying close attention to three key areas:
- Bundling
- Interoperability gaps
- Default settings
This case takes on added significance as it revisits the licensing question that arose from the CMA’s cloud services market investigation, which closed in July 2025. The inquiry group recommended SMS investigations into Microsoft and AWS, but the CMA Board declined to prioritize either, citing voluntary changes made by the companies.
Sarah Cardell, CMA’s chief executive, stressed the importance of business software for the UK economy: “Business software is a cornerstone of how the UK economy functions, from small businesses to major public services and infrastructure.”
The CMA’s investigation aims to determine if competing AI providers can integrate with Microsoft’s software and if Copilot’s defaults are hindering the integration of challenger AI tools. This probe aligns with Brussels’ ongoing interest in this area.