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- Feb 13, 202650% CONFIDENCEfrom the source
FTC Widens Microsoft Antitrust Probe to Cloud Licensing and Copilot
- Bloomberg reported on 13 February 2026 that the FTC had issued civil investigative demands, effectively civil subpoenas, in recent weeks to companies competing with Microsoft in business software and cloud computing; at least half a dozen companies received them[1]
- The agency is seeking evidence that Microsoft makes it harder to use Windows, Office and other products on rival clouds, and asking about Microsoft's bundling of AI, security and identity software into Windows and Office, in a probe of whether it illegally monopolizes enterprise computing with its cloud software and AI offerings, including Copilot[1]
- The licensing questions concern rule changes Microsoft first made in 2019, which UK regulators have also examined; the bundling questions echo the Justice Department's 1990s case over Internet Explorer[1]
- Demands seen by The Verge run past 15 pages and 15 questions and say the aim is to find whether Microsoft used unfair methods of competition in cloud, software and related services under the FTC Act; they ask rivals about bundling, pricing, barriers to entry and competing against AI products like Microsoft 365[2]
- Microsoft and the FTC declined to comment in February; in June Microsoft spokesperson Alex Haurek said the company is "cooperating fully with the FTC" and believes its practices promote competition[1][2]
- The probe began under Chair Lina Khan with a detailed information demand to Microsoft in late 2024 on its cloud, licensing, cybersecurity and AI businesses, and continues under Chairman Andrew Ferguson[1][4]
- Part of the probe has focused since 2024 on Microsoft Entra ID, the identity software formerly called Azure Active Directory, after rivals complained that Microsoft's licensing and bundling make it harder for authentication and security companies to compete[4]
- Commentators ask whether Microsoft ties Office 365 to Azure, charges exit fees to switching customers, and whether building Copilot into Windows 11 and Microsoft 365 amounts to digital tying[3]
- No decision has been made: FTC staff would have to recommend a complaint and the agency's two commissioners vote on it[1][2]
References 467% CONFIDENCE
The first entry is always the pin's source. Overall confidence is a weighted average of how firmly each reference supports the start and end times used above; a reference counts half as much for every 180 days older than the newest.
- [1]50%news.bloomberglaw.com/antitrust/ftc-ratchets-up-microsoft-probe-queries-rivals-on-cloud-ainews.bloomberglaw.com· Posted Sep 23, 2026· Starts Feb 13, 2026 ✓· 46% of score
Estimated, per Bloomberg's exclusive of 13 February 2026 (3:15 PM UTC): the FTC "has issued civil investigative demands in recent weeks" - no day is given, so the pin sits on the day the escalation was first reported.
- [2]90%Microsoft could be the next Big Tech antitrust targettheverge.com· Published Jun 1, 2026· 30% of score
The Verge obtained and verified details of the FTC's civil investigative demands to Microsoft's rivals: 15+ pages and questions on licensing, interoperability, Azure and AI bundling under the FTC Act, with Microsoft's on-record response.
- [3]72%Microsoft's Copilot push irks customers, stirs FTCinfoworld.com· Published Feb 24, 2026· 20% of score
InfoWorld analysis days later: the FTC has been interviewing rivals and issuing civil investigative demands, weighing whether Microsoft ties Office 365 to Azure, levies exit fees and whether Copilot's integration amounts to digital tying.
- [4]74%US Antitrust Watchdog Launches Broad Microsoft Investigationnews.bloomberglaw.com· Published Nov 27, 2024· 4% of score
Bloomberg's November 2024 report of the probe's start: a detailed FTC information demand to Microsoft on cloud, software licensing, cybersecurity and AI under Chair Lina Khan, the investigation this pin's escalation belongs to.[1]
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