(Reuters) – European Union regulators are investigating whether Microsoft is preventing customers from buying security software from competitors, the Information newspaper reported on Tuesday, after the EU announced a It cited a letter sent to at least one competitor.
Companies have long complained about the practice of technology giants bundling their services with their growing cloud businesses.
Regulators at the European Commission, the EU’s competition watchdog, are investigating Microsoft’s Entra ID software, formerly known as Azure Active Directory, according to a report.
The software allows companies to control which personnel can log into their cloud-based apps, the report added.
Alphabet Inc.’s Google Cloud on Monday stepped up its criticism of Microsoft’s cloud computing practices, saying its rival is pursuing a monopoly that harms the development of emerging technologies such as generative artificial intelligence.
Microsoft and the European Commission did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
(Reporting by Harshita Mary Varghese; Editing by Maju Samuel)
