Microsoft was sued for one billion pounds ($1.27 billion) in the U.K. on Tuesday for allegedly overcharging customers for using its Windows Server.
The lawsuit, brought by the firm Scott+Scott and representing “thousands” of British businesses, says the tech giant charged higher prices to customers to access its server if they were using rival could services from Amazon, Google, and Alibaba.
“Put simply, Microsoft is punishing U.K. businesses and organizations for using Google, Amazon, and Alibaba for cloud computing by forcing them to pay more money for Windows Server,” said Dr. Maria Luisa Stasi, who is representing the businesses and organizations in the lawsuit.
Microsoft did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.
The company, according to Stasi, has tried to “force” customers into using its Azure cloud services and restricted competition as a result of its actions.
“This lawsuit aims to challenge Microsoft’s anti-competitive behavior, push them to reveal exactly how much businesses in the U.K. have been illegally penalized, and return the money to organizations that have been unfairly overcharged.”
The lawsuit is being funded by LCM Funding U.K., according to the Wall Street Journal, which ensures claimants don’t face a financial risk to joining in the collective action.
Microsoft’s stock price is flat on the day, trading at $430.40 per share.
The lawsuit shines a light on the highly competitive and lucrative cloud sector among the three major providers. Amazon’s cloud business brought in $27.5 billion during its most recent quarter, and the company expects $110 billion in cloud revenue in 2024. Microsoft reported cloud sales of $24.1 billion last quarter, and Google reported $11.4 billion in revenue from its cloud business.
