The European Commission has opened three new investigations under the Digital Markets Act (DMA) into the cloud computing sector, directly targeting the market dominance of Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure. Announced on 18 November 2025, the probes mark the first time the EU's flagship tech regulation has been applied to cloud services, potentially forcing the two hyperscalers to open up their platforms and change how they bundle services.

Two of the investigations specifically examine whether AWS and Microsoft Azure should be designated as "gatekeepers" under the DMA. Gatekeeper designation would require the companies to adhere to a strict set of interoperability, data portability, and fair business conduct rules. The third probe takes a broader look at systemic issues in the cloud market, including switching barriers and unfair licensing terms that lock businesses into a single provider.

"Cloud computing has become the backbone of the European digital economy," said EU Competition Commissioner Teresa Ribera in a press conference. "We have reason to believe that certain practices by dominant cloud providers may be limiting competition and hurting innovation. These investigations will help us ensure that European businesses have real choice in the cloud."

The DMA, which came into full force in 2024, empowers the European Commission to designate large digital platforms as gatekeepers if they have a significant impact on the internal market, serve as an important gateway for business users to reach end users, and enjoy an entrenched and durable position. While the law initially targeted search engines, social networks, and operating systems, its scope is broad enough to cover cloud computing services, which are increasingly essential infrastructure for businesses of all sizes.

What the DMA Investigations Mean for Cloud Computing

The DMA's gatekeeper rules, if applied to AWS and Azure, would impose a raft of new obligations. For example, gatekeepers would be prohibited from treating their own services and products more favorably in ranking than similar services or products offered by third parties on the gatekeeper's core platform service. In the cloud context, this could mean Microsoft cannot give its own productivity tools or databases preferential positioning on Azure over competing solutions. Similarly, AWS could be forced to treat third-party security or machine learning services equally alongside its proprietary offerings.

Gatekeepers must also allow business users to interoperate with the gatekeeper's operating system, hardware or software features, regardless of whether they are used by the gatekeeper. For cloud, that would translate into enabling customers to easily integrate services from different providers and shift workloads without technical hurdles. The regulation further requires gatekeepers to provide data portability tools that allow business users (and their end users) to transfer data seamlessly, challenging the massive data gravity that ties customers to a single cloud.

Beyond specific dos and don'ts, designation would subject AWS and Azure to ongoing monitoring and reporting obligations. The Commission could also impose structural remedies if systematic non-compliance is found. For the cloud industry, where margins are thinning and competition is intensifying, these rules could level the playing field and spark a new wave of multi-cloud adoption.

The Scope of the AWS Probe

The investigation into Amazon Web Services focuses on the company's dominance in infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS), where it commands roughly 32% of the global market. The Commission will examine whether AWS has used its scale and integrated ecosystem to lock in customers and stifle rivals. Areas of scrutiny include:

  • Bundling and self-preferencing: Allegations that AWS gives preferential treatment to its own database, analytics, and AI services over those from third-party vendors like Snowflake, Databricks, or MongoDB.
  • Egress fees and switching barriers: AWS's data transfer pricing, particularly fees for moving data out of AWS (egress charges), have long been a point of contention. The Commission will assess whether such fees have the effect of making it economically unattractive for customers to switch providers or adopt multi-cloud strategies.
  • Marketplace practices: How AWS curates its marketplace and whether independent software vendors face unfair terms compared to AWS-owned services.

AWS has consistently denied anticompetitive behavior. In a statement following the announcement, Amazon's Chief Legal Officer said, "Customers choose AWS because we offer the broadest and deepest set of capabilities with superior price performance. We compete vigorously with dozens of other providers, and we will continue to cooperate with the Commission to show that our practices benefit European businesses."

Microsoft Azure Under the Microscope

The parallel probe into Microsoft Azure is particularly sensitive given Microsoft's long history with European antitrust authorities. The Commission will investigate the software giant's licensing practices, which critics have long argued are designed to push customers toward Azure and away from rival clouds like AWS, Google Cloud, and regional players like OVHcloud.

The investigation will focus on:

  • Microsoft 365 and Windows Server licensing rules: Since 2019, Microsoft has adjusted licensing terms that made it more expensive for customers to run Microsoft software on competing clouds. Although the company made some concessions in 2022, rivals claim the changes are superficial and that significant restrictions remain.
  • The "Azure Hybrid Benefit" and Reserved Instances: These programs offer discounts but can tie customers into long-term Azure commitments. The Commission will examine whether they effectively discourage multi-cloud architectures.
  • Interoperability with Microsoft's broader ecosystem: Microsoft's vast portfolio—from operating systems to productivity suites—gives it unique power to steer enterprise workloads. The probe will look at whether technical integrations and data formats are used to create an uneven playing field.

For Windows users and IT administrators, the outcome of the Azure investigation could have immediate practical implications. A gatekeeper designation might force Microsoft to offer fair and equal licensing terms for running Windows Server, SQL Server, and Microsoft 365 services on any cloud. This could lead to lower overall cloud bills and more flexible hybrid environments, a core promise of the Windows ecosystem.

Potential Gatekeeper Designations and Their Consequences

If the Commission designates AWS and/or Azure as gatekeepers for one or more core platform services—such as cloud IaaS, PaaS, or SaaS—the companies will have six months to comply with all DMA obligations. Failure to comply can result in fines of up to 10% of the company's total worldwide annual turnover, with the possibility of up to 20% for repeated infringements. Structural remedies, like forcing the separation of certain business units, remain a last-resort measure.

For Microsoft, which reported over $300 billion in revenue in fiscal 2025, a 10% fine would be a severe blow. But the greater impact would be operational: unbundling Teams from Azure offerings (if considered a related service), redesigning licensing portals, and providing API-level interoperability across clouds.

AWS would face similar upheaval. It might be required to offer egress fee-free data transfers, open up its intellectual property around Nitro and Graviton architectures for competitive benchmarking, and ensure that its AI services are as easy to use with data stored on Google Cloud as they are with data in S3.

European cloud providers have long called for such interventions. CISPE, the trade association of European cloud infrastructure providers, hailed the investigations. "This is a decisive moment for the European cloud industry," said a spokesperson. "For too long, unfair software licensing and tying practices have distorted the market. The DMA gives the Commission the tools to finally fix these issues and give European businesses a genuine choice."

Industry Reactions and the Path Forward

Reactions from the tech industry have been mixed. While smaller cloud players celebrated, some analysts caution that overly aggressive regulation could slow innovation or raise compliance costs that are passed on to customers. The Commission's own impact assessment acknowledges this tension, stressing that any measures will be carefully calibrated to avoid unintended harm to the digital economy.

Investors reacted cautiously: Microsoft shares dipped 2% in pre-market trading after the news, while Amazon's stock remained flat, reflecting the market's view that these investigations could drag on for years before any material impact.

For enterprise IT buyers, the investigations add a new layer of uncertainty to long-term cloud planning. Organizations in the midst of multi-year cloud migration projects should watch for interim measures that the Commission might impose before the investigations conclude. While the formal probes are expected to take 12 to 18 months, the Commission can issue cease-and-desist orders even during the proceedings if it identifies egregious violations.

Microsoft has signaled a willingness to engage. In a blog post, the company's VP of EU Government Affairs wrote, "We share the Commission's goal of a competitive cloud market in Europe. We have already made significant changes to our licensing to address earlier concerns, and we will continue to work transparently throughout this process."

Yet skepticism remains. Critics point to Microsoft's past behavior, including the "Project Peace" settlement in 2023 that was widely seen as a half-measure. The DMA, with its clear legal standards and strict enforcement powers, represents a far tougher regime than previous antitrust actions.

AWS, for its part, has launched a charm offensive, highlighting its investments in European data centers and its track record of supporting digital sovereignty. Still, the company's sheer scale makes it an almost textbook case for gatekeeper scrutiny.

The DMA investigations are not happening in a vacuum. They come amid a broader global regulatory push against cloud concentration. The UK's Competition and Markets Authority is conducting its own market study into cloud services, with interim findings expected in early 2026. In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission has been gathering information on cloud provider business practices. A coordinated transatlantic approach could amplify the impact of the EU's actions.

For now, the clock is ticking. The Commission has set a deadline of mid-2027 to conclude all three investigations. By then, the cloud landscape could look very different—with or without formal gatekeeper designations. In the meantime, the probes themselves could push AWS and Azure to preemptively make concessions, as we've seen in other DMA cases.

One thing is clear: the days of unregulated hypergrowth in cloud computing are over. For Windows enthusiasts and the millions of businesses that run on Microsoft's stack, the outcome of the Azure investigation will be particularly consequential. It could redefine how we buy, deploy, and manage cloud services, potentially unlocking a new era of true multi-cloud freedom. But the road to that future will be paved with legal battles, lobbying, and complex technical negotiations.