M.P. CORRESPONDENT / NEW DELHI
Microsoft has said it is
splitting the Teams business messaging and video app from its Office software
globally.
The firm separated the two products in Europe last year
as it faced a possible fine from competition watchdogs.
Teams was added to Office in 2017. The European
Commission has been investigating the move after a complaint from rival Slack
in 2020.
A Microsoft spokesperson told the BBC that the move is
to "ensure clarity for our customers".
It "also addresses feedback from the European
Commission by providing multinational companies more flexibility when they want
to standardise their purchasing across geographies," they added.
Microsoft said in a blogpost that
Teams Standalone will cost $5.25 (£4.20) for new customers.
It in unclear whether the company's decision to split
Teams from Office will be enough to avoid European Union (EU) antitrust
charges.
Over
the past decade, Microsoft has racked up 2.2 billion euros ($2.4bn; £1.9bn) in
EU antitrust fines for tying or bundling two or more products together.
If found guilty of antitrust breaches, it risks a fine
of as much as 10% of its global annual turnover.
In 1998, the US Justice Department sued Microsoft for
using its dominance of the Windows platform to stifle competition from rival
web browsers.
The company has since loosened its control of what
software computer manufacturers could install on their products, resulting in
the surge in popularity of rival internet browsers.
After Teams was split from the Microsoft 365 and Office
Suites in Europe last October, the platform saw little change to the size of
its user base, according to market intelligence firm Sensor Tower.
Data cited by Reuters estimated that monthly active
users of the Microsoft Teams mobile app remained flat in the first three months
of 2024 compared to the previous quarter.
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