US FTC Opens Broader Antitrust Probe Into Microsoft

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) opened a broader antitrust probe into Microsoft, making the software giant the latest big tech firm in the list of firms that the antitrust regulator has been scrutinizing heavily.

FTC would be looking at the cloud computing business of Microsoft, its software licensing, as well as practices that relate to cybersecurity and artificial intelligence products, according to Reuters.

CNN reported that the FTC sent a letter to Microsoft, where it demanded that it hand over information that will be used to assist its investigation into the company.

Prior to Microsoft, the FTC has already started its antitrust probe with other tech giants like Meta, Apple, Amazon, and Google.

The probe into Microsoft has been approved by Chair Lina Khan, who is slated to leave the agency in January, and would be replaced by President-elect Donald Trump's appointee, who may have a softer stance towards the business sector.

The probe into Microsoft would be looking at the alleged abuse of the company by imposing licensing terms that would prevent customers from moving data to other competitive platforms.

Google's parent company Alphabet is also facing a similar antitrust probe. A U.S. judge has declared that it will not be delaying the trial on the case filed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) against Google over the tech giant's dominance in the online search market.

The company has been accused of having illegal monopoly in online search. Prosecutors sought the company to sell Chrome and share its search results with its rivals. The company would have a chance to put forward its remedies in December, and thereafter, a two-week trial will ensue.

Apple has also been on the crosshairs of the government for months. It was in March when the DOJ, along with 16 states sued the iPhone maker.

The company is not only facing challenges in the U.S. but also in Europe where it is set to be fined by the EU's antitrust regulators for allegedly breaching tech rules in the region.

As for Meta, it is also facing scrutiny under the Europe's Court of Justice of the European Union, where the latter ruled that it must restrict using personal data that it harvest from Facebook users for targeted advertising. The issue came after privacy activist Max Schrems took the issue in an Austrian court, saying that he was being targeted by advertisements because of Meta's algorithms.