Shortly after Microsoft decided to cease bundling Teams videoconferencing app with its Office productivity suite in Europe in a bid to allay European Union antitrust concerns, the CEO of Zoom proposed that theFederal Trade Commission (FTC) in the United States should consider a similar action.
Zoom CEO Proposing to Consider Taking Similar Action
During the recent Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference, Zoom CEO Eric Yuan commented on Microsoft's move to unbundle Teams from Office in Europe.
The Verge reported that this action followed an investigation initiated by EU regulators in response to a complaint by Slack, a competitor of Teams.
Yuan suggested that a similar inquiry should be directed to the US FTC, emphasizing the need to explore this matter further. Yuan called for the FTC to consider the situation.
After he was asked about his reaction to Microsoft's move, Yuan emphasized that the same question should be directed toward the FTC.
In an effort to avert antitrust penalties by regulators, Microsoft decided to unbundle Teams from its Microsoft 365 and Office 365 suites in the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland, which will be effective on October 1.
It is a strategic move aimed at addressing concerns raised by a formal European Commission investigation regarding potential breaches of competition rules.
Changes in Microsoft
In July, the commission formally investigated Microsoft's business practices, focusing on whether the company is engaging in anti-competitive behavior and leveraging its dominant position in productivity software.
Bloomberg reported that the investigation examines whether Microsoft's bundling of Teams with its productivity suites unfairly restricts competition and limits interoperability with rival productivity solutions.
As part of Microsoft's adjustments, the company has introduced a pricing change for M365 and O365 aimed at core enterprise customers, who constitute a significant portion of Microsoft's commercial customer base in the affected region.
Starting October 1, these customers can opt for M365 and O365 plans without Teams at a reduced rate, amounting to a savings of $2.15 per month or $25.75 per year. Additionally, standalone Teams subscriptions will be available starting October 1 at a separate fee of $5.36 per month or $64.36 per year.
Existing enterprise customers have the flexibility to maintain their current packages or transition to Teams-less versions of M365 or O365. Microsoft will also introduce Teams-less E1, E3, and E5 packages starting October 1, with prices ranging from $7.94 to $61.90.
In 2020, during the global shift to remote work caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, CRN reported that Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Cisco Webex established themselves as the leading contenders in the collaboration market.
Zoom, in particular, gained prominence by surpassing its rivals in terms of monthly users, outperforming both Teams and Webex. Zoom secured the top position in the global videoconferencing market, boasting an impressive market share of around 55 percent. Following Zoom were Microsoft Teams and Webex.
