Microsoft is reportedly facing scrutiny by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC). According to a report in Bloomberg, FTC is accelerating scrutiny of Microsoft as part of an ongoing probe into whether the company illegally monopolizes large swaths of the enterprise computing market with its cloud software and AI offerings, including Copilot. The agency has reportedly issued civil investigative demands in recent weeks to companies that compete with Microsoft in the business software and cloud computing markets. FTC has asked these companies a list of questions on Microsoft’s licensing and other business practices, says the report quoting people, who are said to have been granted anonymity to discuss a confidential investigation.
What is FTC asking Microsoft customers and rivals
With the demands, which are effectively like civil subpoenas, FTC is reportedly seeking evidence to check if Microsoft makes it harder for customers to use Windows, Office and other products on rival cloud services. The American agency is also requesting information on Microsoft’s bundling of artificial intelligence, security and identity software into other products, including Windows and Office, some of the people said. The probe is now in the hands of FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson. Most of the questions are said to have zeroed in on Microsoft’s licensing practices. About a third of them focused on the company’s AI business and reflected concerns that Microsoft canceled some of its own work after investing in OpenAI and leaning heavily on its software, eliminating potential competition.
Google’s complaint against Microsoft
Incidentally, Google filed a complaint with the European Commission in September 2024, saying Microsoft was exploiting its dominant Windows Server operating system to prevent competition. Google complained that Microsoft’s anti-competitive practices locked customers into Microsoft’s cloud platform Azure. However, in November 2025, Google dropped its EU antitrust complaint about Microsoft’s cloud computing practices, a week after EU regulators launched an investigation to see if Microsoft should be subject to rules aimed at curbing its power in this sector. “Today, we are withdrawing it (Microsoft complaint) in light of the recent announcement that the EC will assess problematic practices affecting the cloud sector under a separate process,” Giorgia Abeltino, head of government affairs and public policy for Google Cloud Europe, said in a blog post. “We continue to work with policymakers, customers, and regulators across the EU, the UK, and elsewhere to advocate for choice and openness in the cloud market,” she said.
What Microsoft says on its Cloud practices
Microsoft on its part has also said that some of its products aren’t fully interoperable with rival clouds because the technology underpinning some features is different. Additionally, a series of damaging hacks has put increasing pressure on the company to offer more robust security features in its core products.
Amazon AWS also under FTC scrutiny
The FTC is also pressing ahead with a similar effort targeting Amazon. Both cases date back to Donald Trump’s first term. Amazon leads the cloud computing market with a 30% share, followed by Microsoft at 20% and Google at 13%.
