On June 25, 2026, European Union regulators declared that Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure should be classified as “gatekeepers” under the Digital Markets Act, setting the stage for a seismic shift in how cloud computing operates across the bloc. The move, announced by the European Commission, directly targets the two largest cloud infrastructure providers and opens the door to strict interoperability mandates that could dismantle long-standing vendor lock-in practices. The decision marks the first time the DMA has been applied to cloud services, signaling a new regulatory frontier for big tech.

The DMA Hammer Falls on Cloud Giants

The designation process for cloud gatekeepers has been brewing since the DMA took full effect in 2023, but until now, regulators focused on online platforms like search engines, social networks, and app stores. With AWS and Azure jointly commanding over 55% of the global cloud infrastructure market—and an even higher share in Europe—the Commission argued that both services serve as critical gateways for business users to reach end customers. Preliminary findings, disclosed on June 25, indicate that AWS and Azure meet the DMA’s quantitative thresholds: each has an annual EU turnover exceeding €7.5 billion, a market capitalization above €75 billion, and act as an important access point for over 45 million monthly active business end users.

The formal designation is not yet final. The companies now have an opportunity to contest the findings and present counter-arguments during a 45-day consultation period. However, if upheld, the gatekeeper label would trigger a cascade of mandatory obligations designed to foster competition and user choice.

What Does Gatekeeper Status Mean?

Under the DMA, gatekeepers are platforms that hold an entrenched and durable position in the digital economy. Once designated, they must comply with a list of “dos and don’ts” within six months. For cloud services, the most disruptive requirements revolve around interoperability and data portability. Specifically, gatekeepers must provide free, effective, and high-quality interoperability with third-party services, and enable business users to easily export their data—including metadata—to alternative providers without technical hindrances.

The DMA also bans self-preferencing, meaning AWS and Azure could no longer design their marketplaces or service bundles in ways that unfairly advantage their own offerings over competitors’. They would have to allow business users to access data generated on the platform, and cannot combine personal data across their other services without explicit consent. Fines for non-compliance can reach up to 10% of global annual turnover, and repeated infringements could force structural remedies—a serious threat for companies whose combined cloud revenue exceeds $100 billion.

Why AWS and Azure?

European regulators have long voiced concerns about hyperscaler dominance in the cloud market. AWS, with its first-mover advantage, set many of the proprietary standards and APIs that now trap enterprises in complex, expensive ecosystems. Microsoft Azure, meanwhile, has leveraged its pervasive enterprise software portfolio—Windows Server, Office 365, Dynamics, and Active Directory—to create seamless but closed integrations that make migrating workloads away extremely costly. The DMA probe explicitly cited evidence from competitors and business users who reported exorbitant egress fees, technical barriers, and restrictive licensing that prevented them from using multiple clouds effectively.

Smaller European cloud providers, such as OVHcloud and Deutsche Telekom’s T-Systems, have lobbied heavily for intervention, accusing the hyperscalers of using “unfair software licensing practices” to lock in customers. The Commission’s own market investigation, concluded in early 2026, confirmed that switching costs remain artificially high due to a lack of common standards and the refusal of AWS and Azure to support open container and API specifications fully.

The Interoperability Imperative

If the gatekeeper designation sticks, AWS and Azure will be forced to overhaul their platforms to allow seamless, real-time data migration and service interoperability. For enterprise customers, this could mean the difference between staying trapped in a single vendor and building a flexible multi-cloud architecture. The DMA requires gatekeepers to provide continuous, high-quality access to interoperability tools at no extra charge. In practice, that might mean AWS exposing its underlying APIs in a standard format, or Microsoft enabling Azure Active Directory to federate natively with competitive identity providers without premium add-on fees.

Industry analysts predict that such a mandate would accelerate the adoption of open-source cloud frameworks like Kubernetes and Terraform, and could give rise to a new wave of middleware companies that bridge cloud platforms. The Commission has been careful to note that the obligation is not to open-source proprietary code, but to ensure functional equivalence so that third-party services can interact with gatekeeper platforms on par with the gatekeeper’s own services. Still, the technical and legal boundaries will be fiercely contested.

Impact on Microsoft IT and Enterprise Customers

For Windows-centric IT departments, the DMA’s reach into Azure strikes at the heart of the Microsoft ecosystem. Many organizations run hybrid environments that rely on Active Directory, SQL Server, and Exchange Online, all tightly woven with Azure. The forced unbundling of these integrations could upend years of architectural decisions. IT administrators might suddenly have viable alternatives for every layer of the stack—cloud compute, identity management, database services—without losing functionality or incurring punitive licensing costs.

This potential new landscape carries both promise and peril. On one hand, enterprises burdened by rising Azure bills could finally shop around for cheaper compute or storage services, knowing that their Windows-based workloads will port smoothly. The DMA could democratize access to best-of-breed tools; for example, a company could keep its Active Directory on Azure while moving its virtual machines to AWS or a European sovereign cloud. On the other hand, the unbundling could increase complexity for IT teams accustomed to single-vendor support and unified management consoles. Microsoft has long argued that its integrated stack provides security and performance benefits that fragmentation would undermine.

For Microsoft’s partners, the rules could create new opportunities: ISVs that build on Azure would gain more leverage to offer their applications on other clouds with minimal friction. However, Microsoft’s own revenue models would face pressure. Azure’s profitability stems partly from the ecosystem lock-in—a playbook perfected by Amazon, too. Forced interoperability might compress margins and force Microsoft to compete more aggressively on price and innovation rather than on switching cost inertia.

Both Amazon and Microsoft have vocally opposed the gatekeeper designation, calling it an overreach that could stifle innovation and harm the customer experience. In statements following the June 25 announcement, Amazon emphasized that the DMA was originally intended for consumer-facing platforms, not enterprise infrastructure, and that the cloud market is dynamic and competitive. Microsoft warned that imposing rigid interoperability requirements could compromise security models and slow down the deployment of critical updates.

Legal challenges are almost certain. The DMA allows for appeals to the European Court of Justice, and history shows that large tech firms will exhaust every avenue to delay compliance. Microsoft, in particular, might argue that Azure’s integration with Windows is a legitimate product design choice, not an anti-competitive practice. The Commission, however, has fortified the DMA with clear market definitions and extensive consultation, likely anticipating courtroom battles.

Strategically, both companies may preempt some obligations by voluntarily adopting open standards or reducing egress fees—something they have already begun doing in response to earlier regulatory pressure. In 2025, AWS eliminated data transfer charges for customers leaving its platform, and Microsoft slashed Azure bandwidth fees after a UK antitrust probe. Such moves could be framed as good-faith efforts while the gatekeeper dispute runs its course.

What Comes Next?

The next milestone is the formal designation decision, expected by September 2026, after the consultation period closes. If AWS and Azure are indeed named gatekeepers, they will have six months to submit a detailed compliance plan to the Commission. Regulators will then monitor implementation, with the power to launch further investigations and impose corrective measures. The process is not swift; full compliance could stretch into 2027 or beyond.

Other cloud providers are watching closely. Google Cloud, while trailing the top two in market share, could also fall under the DMA’s scope if its European business grows. Meanwhile, the EU’s action will reverberate globally. The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority has already signaled it is considering similar designations under its own digital markets regime. In the United States, antitrust sentiment against big tech remains high, and a European mandate for cloud interoperability could embolden U.S. regulators or inspire congressional action.

For Windows users and IT professionals, the DMA probe is not a distant policy squabble—it is a practical pivot that could redefine how they architect, budget, and secure their cloud estates. The forced opening of Azure may finally deliver on the long-promised dream of genuine multi-cloud portability. But it also risks adding a layer of regulatory complexity that enterprises must navigate.

The coming months will reveal how thoroughly the Commission intends to rewrite the rules of cloud competition. One thing is certain: the era of unchecked hyperscaler lock-in is coming under direct fire, and the reverberations will be felt from Brussels to Redmond to every server rack dependent on a single vendor’s cloud vision.