Microsoft Offers to Unbundle Teams from Office 365 to Address EU Antitrust Concerns

On May 16, 2025, Microsoft proposed significant changes to its Office 365 and Microsoft 365 offerings in response to the European Commission’s antitrust investigation. The company aims to address concerns about bundling its Teams application with its productivity suites, a practice that competitors like Slack and Alfaview have criticized since 2020.

Microsoft’s proposal includes selling versions of Office 365 and Microsoft 365 without Teams at a reduced price, allowing customers to switch to these versions even within existing contracts. The company also plans to enhance interoperability, enabling rival platforms to integrate more effectively with Microsoft’s services. Additionally, customers would have the ability to extract their Teams data for use with competing solutions.

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These commitments would apply for seven years, with interoperability and data portability provisions extending to ten years. Microsoft has indicated that, if the European Commission accepts these commitments, it will implement similar changes globally.

The European Commission is currently seeking feedback from competitors and customers on Microsoft’s proposal. If accepted, the commitments could conclude the ongoing investigation and help Microsoft avoid potential fines. Salesforce, which owns Slack, has stated it will thoroughly review the proposed changes.