London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Sep 17, 2025

Amazon and Microsoft's dominance in cloud services market 'concerning', says Ofcom

Amazon and Microsoft's dominance in cloud services market 'concerning', says Ofcom

Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure hold upwards of 70% of the cloud infrastructure market in the UK, compared to between 5% and 10% for Google. Even smaller providers include IBM and Oracle.
Amazon and Microsoft's "concerning" dominance in the cloud services market could require investigation by the UK's competitions regulator, Ofcom has said.

The Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA) was told it may want to look into the sector after the media watchdog identified issues of its own with how it is skewed towards the US tech giants.

Cloud services essentially provide computing power remotely. Most of us think of the cloud as somewhere we keep files and photos without taking up storage space on our phones.

But cloud services are also the backbone of websites and online platforms - and many businesses rely on those provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure.

They have 60-70% of the market share, Ofcom said.

When such a service has issues, it can have a knock-on impact on its customers. For example, Disney+ and Netflix have been knocked over by previous AWS outages.

Ofcom director Fergal Farragher described cloud services as "the digital backbone of our economy".

'More scrutiny needed'

Ofcom said it was "particularly concerned" about how Amazon and Microsoft used their position to charge "significantly higher" fees than smaller competitors for customers who want to switch provider.

It also said the companies prevent some services from working effectively alongside those from rivals. Less-known providers include IBM and Oracle, while Google (5-10% market share) is another player in the space.

Ofcom said Amazon and Microsoft's practices could see the market "concentrate further" towards them.

Mr Farragher added: "We think more in-depth scrutiny is needed, to make sure it is working well for people and businesses who rely on these services."

Consumer group Which? said Ofcom was "right to raise concerns", warning the "excessive influence" of tech giants "shut out smaller competitors" and "leads to less choice and potentially higher costs for consumers".

Ofcom to report back by October

Ofcom said it would take feedback on its findings until mid-May and make a final recommendation in October.

The CMA, which recently dropped concerns over Microsoft's £56bn deal for games giant Activision Blizzard, would likely not decide whether to investigate until then.

Microsoft said it would continue to engage with Ofcom's study.

"We remain committed to ensuring the UK cloud industry stays highly competitive, and to supporting the transformative potential of cloud technologies to help accelerate growth across the UK economy," it added.

Amazon said: "We design our cloud services to give customers the freedom to build the solution that is right for them, with the technology of their choice.

"This has driven increased competition across a range of sectors in the UK economy by broadening access to innovative, highly secure, and scalable IT services."
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
×