Overview
- The European Commission launched two investigations to assess whether AWS and Azure should be designated as gatekeepers and a third to examine whether the DMA adequately addresses cloud-sector practices.
- Officials said they aim to conclude the inquiries within 12 months, setting a clear timeline for potential regulatory action.
- If designated, the cloud services would join firms’ existing core platform services under the DMA, triggering interoperability and non‑self‑preferencing obligations and potential fines of up to 10% of global turnover for violations.
- The Commission will analyze whether the providers act as important gateways even if they do not meet standard gatekeeper thresholds for size and users.
- Microsoft said it is ready to cooperate, while AWS warned that gatekeeper labels could stifle innovation and raise costs for European companies; AWS leads the global market, followed by Azure, with Google Cloud third and not under investigation.