The CMA opens an investigation into the supply of public cloud infrastructure services in the UK with the deadline of April 4, 2025, following Ofcom's referral

Following its probe into the UK cloud services market, Ofcom has referred the matter to the CMA …

The Verge 2023-10-06 Tom Warren

Context & Ripple Effects

This is the escalation of a review Ofcom began in 2022, when it identified cloud computing as a market requiring competition scrutiny. Ofcom subsequently said AWS, Azure and Google may be limiting UK cloud competition and referred the matter to the CMA.

The referral moves the issue from a sector review into a formal competition investigation. The later provisional finding that cloud competition was not working for consumers shows why the referral became a consequential test of cloud-market oversight.

First-order effects

The CMA begins a formal examination of UK public-cloud infrastructure supply, putting the commercial practices of the major providers identified by Ofcom under sustained regulatory scrutiny through the stated deadline.
Ofcom’s findings now become the basis for a CMA process rather than a standalone communications-regulator review; the earlier finding of potential harm to cloud competition gains a competition-law route for follow-up.

Second-order effects

Cloud customers and smaller providers gain a focal point for raising concerns about the terms and conditions they face from large infrastructure suppliers, while the named suppliers must engage with the investigation.
The referral raises the cost of business practices that regulators view as potentially restricting rivalry, potentially shaping providers’ commercial responses before any final CMA conclusion.

Third-order effects

If competition concerns are substantiated, UK cloud infrastructure could be treated less as a conventional technology market and more as essential digital infrastructure requiring ongoing competition oversight.
The case tests whether sector-regulator referrals can become a repeatable route for addressing concentration in foundational digital services; the ultimate remedies and market effects remain uncertain.

The trend: This is part of a broader shift toward applying competition oversight to the concentrated infrastructure layers on which digital services depend.

Discussion

@wavesblog @wavesblog on x
“This is a £7.5bn market that underpins a whole host of online services - from social media to AI foundation models. Many businesses now completely rely on cloud services, making effective competition in this market essential”
@cmagovuk @cmagovuk on x
Following Ofcom's referral, we are investigating the supply of public cloud infrastructure services in the UK. Cloud services allow remote access to computing resources on demand and over a network. Read more: https://www.gov.uk/... [image]
@arjunkharpal Arjun Kharpal on x
Amazon and Microsoft's cloud dominance referred for UK competition probe. UK regulators continuing on the front foot against U.S. big tech firms. I believe they probably have one eye on the AI market and are concerned about $AMZN + $MSFT dominance there https://www.cnbc.com/...
@ryan_browne_ Ryan Browne on x
This is big. Ofcom, the media watchdog, has referred its probe into the UK cloud industry to the CMA. This means that Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure, the market leaders, will face much tougher scrutiny. https://www.cnbc.com/...
@mark_wharrier Mark Wharrier on x
A reminder of the long term threat to big tech, here is a market where two incumbents control 80%. Unless they continue to provide new innovation and utility to customers, regulators will unpick returns to the benefit of customer pricing. See AT&T, Standard Oil, etc for details
@maxvonthun Max von Thun on x
Good news as the CMA launches a market investigation into the highly concentrated cloud market. Unlike previous French/Dutch investigations, the CMA has the power to impose serious remedies, including divestment. And thanks to Ofcom's preliminary work, things should move faster.
@mikarv @mikarv on x
cloud services are commonly misunderstood as just allowing remote access to computing resources over a network, but in practice are all about large firms shaping and homogenising what ‘tasks’ are in organisations to sell their computation at int'l scale with low marginal cost.
@tomwarren Tom Warren on x
The CMA is investigating Microsoft over cloud concerns again. This time it's part of a new investigation into major cloud providers that also includes Amazon. Full details: https://www.theverge.com/...
@ofcom @ofcom on x
☁️ Cloud computing is critical for businesses across the UK. But if left unchecked, competition could deteriorate in the market. We're concerned it's difficult to switch provider due to: ➡️ High fees for transferring data out ➡️ Committed spend discounts ➡️ Technical barriers
@tboormantony Tony Boorman on x
Important implications for providers and users. Given the increasing reliance we all place on the public cloud providers this is a much needed intervention. Given the scale of global demand the returns to scale should not inhibit more effective competition.
@ofcom @ofcom on x
📢 We are referring the UK cloud market to @CMAgovuk for further investigation. Our market study has revealed features that could limit competition among providers - and we are particularly concerned about the position of the market leaders Amazon and Microsoft. [1/3] [image]

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