• 34ºc, Sunny

The US antitrust agency has launched an investigation into Microsoft

The US FTC (FTC) has opened an antitrust investigation into Microsoft (MSFT. O) that ranges from the company's cloud computing and software licensing businesses to cyber security products and artificial intelligence products, sources said. After more than a year of informal interviews with Microsoft's competitors and business partners, law enforcement officials have drawn up a hundreds of pages-long request for the company to hand over relevant information. FTC antitrust lawyers will meet with Microsoft's competitors next week to gather more information. A focus of the current investigation is Microsoft's bundling of its popular office productivity and security software with cloud products. The FTC's scrutiny of Microsoft's cloud computing business has intensified after a series of cyber security incidents involving Microsoft products. Microsoft's lapses in cyber security, combined with its position as a government contractor, are seen by the FTC as problematic for its clout in the market. Part of the investigation focuses on Microsoft practices related to security software Microsoft Entra ID, formerly known as Azure Active Directory, which helps authenticate users to log into cloud-based software.