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EU Accepts Microsoft’s Teams Unbundling, Ending Probe Without a Fine

Binding commitments replace a potential multibillion-euro penalty with a seven-to-ten‑year regimen of pricing, interoperability and data mobility obligations.

European Union flags flap in the wind outside EU headquarters in Brussels, Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
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FILE - The logo of Microsoft is seen outside its French headquarters in Issy-les-Moulineaux, outside Paris, on May 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, File)
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Overview

  • Microsoft will offer Office 365 and Microsoft 365 without Teams at a lower price and let customers on long‑term licenses switch to suites without the app.
  • The company agreed to widen by 50% the price gap between suites with and without Teams, setting a €1–€8 monthly difference for seven years.
  • Rivals gain improved access through interoperability for key functions and users can export Teams data to competing services, with those measures running for ten years.
  • Brussels made the commitments legally binding and reserved the power to levy penalties of up to 10% of Microsoft’s global turnover if it fails to comply.
  • The decision closes a five‑year case launched after Slack’s 2020 complaint, with Slack and Alfaview withdrawing their grievances following the market test, and Microsoft says the changes will be implemented globally.