Microsoft’s UK Regulatory Problem Just Got Bigger

This article first appeared on GuruFocus.

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT, Financials) the software and cloud behemoth, is facing a bigger legal battle in the U.K. than only cloud switching.Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority recommended granting Microsoft strategic market status in commercial software.That might open the door to new restrictions governing how Microsoft packages products like Excel, Teams, security tools and Copilot.The regulator said Microsoft has a strong position in operating systems, productivity applications, security, servers and database administration.It also highlighted hurdles that make it hard to transfer providers. That’s important because Microsoft’s revenue model works better if users use more than one of its products.The more integrated those technologies are, the more difficult it may be for competing services to carve out a piece of the account.The CMA also aims to look into whether companies are allowed to use rival AI technologies…