EU opens antitrust investigation against Microsoft over Office and videoconferencing Teams bundling

By RAF CASERT
Associated Press

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union is opeing a formal antitrust investigation targeting Microsoft into the software company’s Teams messaging and videoconferencing app over concerns that its bundling with its Office productivity sofware suite gives it an unfair edge over competitors. The European Commission said Thursday that it would carry out its in-depth investigation “as a matter of priority.” The investigation stems from a complaint filed in 2020 by Slack Technologies which makes popular workplace messaging software. Slack is owned by business software maker Salesforce and it alleged that Microsoft was abusing its market dominance to eliminate competition in violation of EU laws by illegally combining Teams with its Office productivity software suite.