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EU slaps Microsoft with a $2.4bn fine, Microsoft to separate Teams and Office due to ongoing monopoly lawsuit
Microsoft, already embroiled in several monopoly lawsuits and currently dealing with a $2.4 billion penalty, could face additional charges. To prevent this, the corporation has chosen to offer its Teams applications independent of its Office suite.
Microsoft has declared its intention to globally distribute its chat and video application, Teams, independently from its Office suite. This decision comes half a year after the company detached the two products in Europe due to possible EU antitrust issues.
Since 2020, the European Commission has been examining Microsoft's packaging of Office and Teams due to a grievance lodged by Slack, a rival workspace communication application under Salesforce's ownership.
Teams, first introduced to Office 365 at no cost in 2017, became increasingly popular, especially during the pandemic, for its video conferencing features following its replacement of Skype for Business.
Detractors contended that packaging the products gave Microsoft an unjust edge. As a result, Microsoft began offering Office and Teams as separate entities in the European Union and Switzerland from August 31 the previous year.
Following customer suggestions and to offer more buying flexibility to global corporations, Microsoft has chosen to expand its unbundling worldwide, as stated by a representative from the company.
Microsoft is launching new global commercial versions of Microsoft 365 and Office 365 that exclude Teams as part of their recent modifications. Moreover, Enterprise clients outside the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland will have access to an independent Teams package.
Starting from April 1, clients have the choice to either maintain their existing license agreements or transition to the new plans.
The pricing for Office excluding Teams for fresh business clients will range from $7.75 to $54.75. On the other hand, Teams as a separate service will be charged at $5.25. The prices could fluctuate based on the country and currency.
Even though Microsoft has been trying to appease antitrust worries, the steps taken might not be enough to evade possible allegations from the European Union. Competitors have been voicing complaints about the costs and interoperability of their messaging platforms with Office Web Applications.
Over the past ten years, Microsoft has incurred antitrust penalties amounting to 2.2 billion euros in the European Union for packaging its products together. If found guilty of further antitrust breaches, the company might be penalized up to 10% of its worldwide annual revenue.
(Incorporating information from various sources)
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