At Microsoft we recognize the importance of a competitive environment in the European cloud provider market, in which smaller competitors can thrive. It is therefore critical for us to remain mindful of our responsibilities as a major technology company. In May of this year, after constructive discussions with representatives of our European cloud provider partners, Microsoft President and Vice Chair Brad Smith announced our European Cloud Principles and committed to addressing their valid concerns, starting with changes to our software licensing terms.
Today, we are providing important updates on these changes for these partners and their customers in Europe and around the world, which we will introduce on 1 October 2022. They are intended to help these partners to be more competitive and grow their businesses. They will also provide more flexibility for their customers.
The changes have three primary goals:
- Make it easier for customers to bring their software to the partner’s cloud
- Ensure partners have access to the products necessary to sell cost-effective solutions that customers want
- Empower partners to build hosted solutions with speed and scale
We are committed to competing fairly and in partnership with the diverse group of European cloud providers, and we strongly believe in the importance of an open and competitive cloud economy in Europe.