Written by Fu Yun Chi
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Alphabet Inc’s Google Cloud on Monday doubled down on criticism of Microsoft’s cloud computing practices, accusing rivals of pursuing a monopoly that harms the development of emerging technologies such as generative artificial intelligence. said.
Microsoft and Amazon have recently come under scrutiny in the UK, European Union and US over their market power in cloud computing. Google is well behind his two leaders by a third.
Microsoft’s collaboration with ChatGPT creator OpenAI also adds to the concerns.
“We want to change the way Microsoft has been doing for a decade, where they used to dominate on-premises software and now they’re trying to push it into the cloud,” Google Cloud vice president Amit Zaveri said in an interview. I’m concerned that there may be,” he said in an interview. .
“So they’re creating this whole walled garden, but it’s completely controlled and owned by Microsoft, and customers who want to do something like this only have to go to Microsoft.” He said.
“If the Microsoft cloud doesn’t remain open, we’re going to see problems and long-term problems even with next-generation technologies like AI, because Microsoft is forcing customers to move to Azure in many ways.” said Zavery, referring to Microsoft’s services. cloud computing platform.
He called on antitrust regulators to take action.
“I think regulators need to provide some guidance, and maybe some regulation that blocks the way Microsoft is building its Azure cloud business and prevents the on-premises monopoly from becoming a cloud monopoly. ” Zavery said.
Microsoft dismissed that argument.
“Competition among cloud hyperscalers remains healthy, as the latest independent data shows,” a Microsoft spokesperson said. “In 2023, Microsoft and Google made small gains on his AWS, but AWS remains the global market leader by a significant margin.”
Microsoft President Brad Smith quietly criticized Google on Monday.
“Currently, only one company is vertically integrated, including all layers of AI, from chips to thriving mobile app stores,” he said at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
Zavery also criticized Microsoft’s agreements with individual cloud vendors for ignoring broader issues. Industry group CISPE announced last month that it was in talks with Microsoft to resolve EU antitrust claims over its cloud computing licensing practices.
“Microsoft has been very smart and has chosen individual vendors to complain and do one-sided deals with, but they don’t solve the broader problem. So in many cases you can pick winners and losers. So it’s like they choose the vendor they want to compete with,” Zaveri said.
Microsoft refuted this criticism.
“We have listened to independent cloud providers and worked constructively and directly with them to change our licensing terms, address their concerns and provide more opportunities for 100 companies worldwide. “More cloud providers are already taking advantage of these changes,” a Microsoft spokesperson said. .
(Reporting by Fu Yun Qi; Editing by Richard Chan)
