Microsoft has announced that it will allow business customers in Europe to purchase its video and chat app, Teams, separately from its Office software. This move comes in response to the European Union's antitrust investigation into Microsoft's bundling of the products. Starting from October 1, this change will apply to business customers in the EU and four other European countries that use Microsoft 365 and Office 365 suites.
In addition to offering Teams as a standalone product, Microsoft will also facilitate integration with other software providers such as Zoom and Salesforce-owned Slack. By making it easier for other companies to integrate their products with Microsoft 365, formerly known as Office 365, Microsoft aims to provide its customers with access to a wider range of solutions that meet their specific needs.
Nanna-Louise Linde, Microsoft's vice-president for European government affairs, stated that these changes aim to strike a balance between the interests of competitors and those of European business customers. The company believes that these updates will enable customers to access the best possible solutions at competitive prices.
As part of the announcement, Microsoft revealed that it will reduce the cost for "core enterprise customers" by €2 ($2.2) per month for Microsoft 365 and Office 365 subscriptions without Teams. Moreover, new customers in Europe will have the option to purchase Teams separately for €5 ($5.4) per month, providing them with the popular video-conferencing feature without the need for other Office apps.
Existing enterprise customers who already use Teams as part of their productivity suite will have the choice to continue with their current configuration or switch to a suite without Teams.
The EU's probe into Microsoft's practices follows a complaint by Slack in 2020, alleging that Microsoft had illegally tied Teams to its dominant workplace software. Microsoft has stated that it will continue to engage with the investigation and remains open to finding pragmatic solutions that benefit both customers and developers in Europe.
Overall, Microsoft's decision to separate Teams from Office in Europe is a response to regulatory pressure, enabling customers to have more flexibility and choice in selecting the software solutions that best meet their business requirements.