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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesThe UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) recommended prioritising investigations into whether Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft should be designated under the UK’s digital markets regime. That recommendation followed a market investigation that found competition in public cloud infrastructure was not working well; it was not itself a designation, an order to change practices, or a finding that either company had already breached new conduct requirements. In its latest cloud update, dated 31 March 2026, the CMA said both providers had set out steps on data-transfer fees and interoperability, but that further work remained and progress was still under review.
What did the CMA recommend?
On 31 July 2025, the CMA published the final outcome of its investigation into UK public cloud infrastructure services and closed that market investigation. It recommended that the authority prioritise strategic market status (SMS) investigations to consider AWS and Microsoft’s cloud activities. An SMS investigation is a separate process for deciding whether a firm should receive that designation under the UK’s digital markets powers.
The distinction matters: the CMA’s recommendation was a proposed next step, not an SMS designation. The final case record described an adverse effect on competition leading to remedies, but the recommendation still called for consideration of SMS investigations. The CMA’s case record and final decision are available on its cloud services market investigation page.
What makes switching or using multiple clouds difficult?
Ofcom’s 5 October 2023 referral identified three features that could make it harder for UK businesses to switch providers or use several cloud platforms together. Ofcom referred the market to the CMA after its study raised concerns that these frictions could weaken customers’ bargaining power and make it harder for competing providers to grow. The Ofcom market study and referral explains the regulator’s concerns.
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Data-transfer-out charges
Egress fees are charges for transferring data out of a cloud service. If a customer wants to move data elsewhere or operate across providers, those charges can add to the cost of changing arrangements.
Interoperability and portability barriers
Moving data is only part of a cloud migration. Applications may also need to be reconfigured to work in a new environment or across more than one provider. Technical barriers and the work they require can make switching or multi-cloud use more difficult.
Committed-spend discounts
Discounts tied to a customer committing a certain level of spending with one provider were also part of Ofcom’s concerns. The CMA’s January 2025 provisional findings, however, treated the issue differently: the CMA provisionally found that egress fees and technical barriers harmed competition, but that committed-spend discounts, as then implemented, did not harm competition because rivals could profitably compete against them. Those were provisional findings, not a claim that every discount arrangement is harmless.
What does the market-share evidence show?
Ofcom estimated that AWS and Microsoft together held 70–80% of UK public cloud infrastructure services revenue in 2022. It estimated Google’s share in the same market at 5–10%, describing Google as the closest competitor. These are historical estimates for a specific market and year—not current market shares. Ofcom said the estimates drew on information requests and data from Synergy and IDC.
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The CMA’s October 2023 scope announcement described the broader UK cloud services market as worth £7.5 billion. That was a contemporaneous estimate at the start of the inquiry; it should not be treated as a current valuation or as directly interchangeable with Ofcom’s narrower public-cloud-infrastructure market-share figures. The CMA’s case record provides the inquiry context.
Have AWS and Microsoft been forced to change their practices?
The CMA’s 31 March 2026 update said Amazon and Microsoft had set out steps addressing egress fees and interoperability following engagement with the authority. The CMA said it would continue to assess whether those steps deliver for UK customers, seek further steps on switching and multi-homing, and review progress in six months. The update reported engagement and company steps under review; it did not announce cloud SMS conduct requirements for either provider or establish that the concerns had been resolved.
Sarah Cardell, the CMA’s chief executive, said that the authority had seen “real progress” on egress fees and interoperability and expected more action over the coming months. The full CMA update is dated 31 March 2026. It is the latest official cloud update identified here; no conclusion from the six-month progress review is established.
How does Microsoft’s separate 2026 investigation fit in?
In May 2026, the CMA opened a separate SMS investigation into Microsoft’s business software ecosystem. Its stated scope includes productivity software, operating systems, database management and security software, and the CMA said it expected a decision on whether to designate Microsoft by February 2027. The investigation may address licensing issues relevant to cloud, but it is not a reopening of the closed cloud market investigation and does not presume wrongdoing. See the CMA’s business software ecosystem announcement.
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Cardell said an SMS designation in that separate process could enable the CMA to address remaining concerns about Microsoft’s cloud licensing practices. That possibility is not the same as a finding that Microsoft has been designated or that particular cloud licensing rules are already in force.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why the outcome matters to cloud customers
For businesses, the practical question is whether moving data and applications—or running them across more than one provider—becomes easier and less costly. Lower transfer charges alone would not remove technical migration work; improvements to portability and interoperability would need to make systems easier to move or connect. The CMA’s March 2026 update kept attention on those issues by saying it was seeking further progress on switching and multi-homing.
The regulators’ concerns do not mean cloud competition has produced no benefits. Ofcom acknowledged innovation and discounts, particularly when providers compete for new customers. Its concern was that switching frictions and provider incentives could weaken competitive pressure over time.
One independent security architect, Owen Sayers, argued in Computer Weekly that government procurement concentration could limit the practical impact of regulatory action unless government contracts were redistributed to UK domestic providers. That was Sayers’s opinion, not a CMA finding or an order in the investigation. The original Computer Weekly report covered the July 2025 announcement.
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