A software reseller has launched a bid to hobble Microsoft's defense to a £270 million ($343 million) claim that the technology giant broke antitrust laws by trying to stifle the resale market for its software licenses. ValueLicensing said Friday it has asked the U.K. Competition Appeal Tribunal to strike out part of Microsoft's defense that any anti-competitive conduct was "objectively justified."
Microsoft Faces Early Bid To Nix Defenses In Antitrust Fight
Law360, London (December 15, 2023, 7:53 PM GMT) -- A software reseller has launched a bid to hobble Microsoft's defense to a £270 million ($343 million) claim that the technology giant broke antitrust laws by trying to stifle the resale market for its software licenses.
ValueLicensing said Friday it has asked the U.K. Competition Appeal Tribunal to strike out part of Microsoft's defense that any anti-competitive conduct was "objectively justified."
Microsoft denies abusing its market dominance to suppress the software resale market, but relies on the argument that any alleged anti-competitive behavior was "objectively justified" as a fallback.
Microsoft similarly said that any allegedly anti-competitive terms with customers were "necessary and reasonable," and that any restriction to competition was "outweighed by and proportionate to" the benefits of moving away from licenses and toward a subscription model for its software.