Microsoft And Alphabet Team Up
Microsoft and Alphabet give up on their rivalry for a bigger cause.
It is not a new phenomenon to see tech giants battling it out with each other. But since some time now, Alphabet Inc. and Microsoft Corporation have been battling it out with each other. This is not it but both the parties are involved in numerous lawsuits pertaining to different issues.
The Windows giant and the search giant have been battling it out with each other over issues like ill search practices, patent infringement, and employee poaching along with others.
Thus, when the European Commission decided to initiate an investigation against the Alphabet due to its anti-competitive practices, MSFT realized that it was a good opportunity for them to sabotage Google by coming up with its own regulatory complains targeted towards them. This might have been a good strategy only if the Windows maker was on the good books of the Commission.
At this point, Microsoft is dealing with almost same level of scrutiny by the regulatory body. So it looks like both the parties have developed empathy for each other since they have decided to move towards a truce. As per a report by the Re/Code, Google and Microsoft have unanimously decided to take down all the regulatory complaints that are pending against one other in various regions across the globe. Both the parties have finally come to a settlement. Moreover, they have also vouched to resolve issues amongst themselves in the times to come instead of opting for a regulatory mechanism.
As per a spokesperson from Microsoft, “Microsoft has agreed to withdraw its regulatory complaints against Google, reflecting our changing legal priorities. […] We will continue to focus on competing vigorously for business and for customers.”
At this point, the company has adopted a neutral stance when it comes to the dispute between Google and European Union. This also encompasses the recent Android case. The company seems to be devoted to the cause since it has left two non-profit organizations namely Initiative for a Competitive Online Marketplace (ICOMP) and FairSearch. These were the NGOs that alleged the company for being involved in manipulating the search business as per their benefit.
Similarly, the Public Relation team of Google acknowledged Re/Code that will also drop on all the Complaints it had against Microsoft. Other than that, the OS maker further highlighted that it desired to compete with the software behemoth in terms of product than litigation.
It needs to be noted that the relations between Google and Microsoft are getting better but this has not happened suddenly. Back in October, 2015, both the parties willingly gave up on patent disputes which had haunted both parties since half a decade. Other than that, both the companies have vouched to be there for each other to come up with technological advancement.
The approach of Google and Microsoft has evolved and instrumentally matured over the passage of time, this is said to be because of a change in leadership with Mr. Satya Nadella and Sundar Pichai taking charge. From the time Mr. Nadella took control of Microsoft, the company has integrated Android in a variety of its offerings. Office Suite and Skype have also surfaced on the OS.
