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Japan probes Microsoft Azure over alleged software restrictions
Microsoft Japan’s president, Miki Tsusaka, said the company is compliant with an antitrust inquiry by Japan’s Fair Trade Commission into its Azure cloud services.
The JFTC is probing whether Microsoft prevented its software from running on platforms other than Azure, according to reports.
Tsusaka emphasized Microsoft operates with integrity in Japan, a key market where the company said in 2024 it would invest about US$2.9 billion over two years to boost AI and cloud infrastructure.
The investigation comes as a US antitrust watchdog has stepped up a probe into Microsoft’s licensing and business practices.
Research firm IDC expects Japan’s cloud market to reach ¥19 trillion (US$121 billion) by 2029, roughly double 2024’s total, driven by AI demand.
Tsusaka noted Japan’s progress in AI adoption despite challenges from an aging and shrinking population and the “human side of change.”
She declined to comment further on the investigation’s details.
🔗 Source: Bloomberg
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Implications, context, and why it matters.
The probe centers on Microsoft’s cloud restrictions and licensing practices
- The Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) is examining Microsoft’s licensing terms and related cloud rules.
- The inquiry includes whether Microsoft blocked its software from running on cloud platforms outside Microsoft Azure.
- Microsoft Japan president Miki Tsusaka said the company is cooperating with the JFTC and that Microsoft runs its business with integrity in Japan.
- In the United States, an antitrust watchdog has increased a separate review of Microsoft’s licensing and other business practices.
- Japanese regulators have also challenged other global tech firms, including Google over Android app distribution and Amazon over marketplace pricing practices 1.
Japan’s AI and cloud investment boom is colliding with tighter oversight of large tech firms
- Microsoft has said it plans to invest about US$2.9 billion over two years to expand AI and cloud infrastructure in Japan 2.
- IDC expects Japan’s cloud market to hit ¥19 trillion (US$121 billion) by 2029, around twice the 2024 total, as AI demand grows.
- Tsusaka said Japan is moving ahead on AI adoption despite an aging and shrinking population and what she called the “human side of change.” She declined to discuss the investigation in more detail.
