Time For Change: Microsoft and their Unfair Antitrust Practices

by Anthony Spinella

As a former Town Councilman and strong believer in holding companies accountable for their actions, I’m acutely aware of how important it is for the U.S Government to contract with companies that prioritize security, integrity, and accountability in their operations.

Over the past year, I’ve seen a lot of troubling news about Microsoft, and yet I’ve seen nothing that suggests any consequences for those actions, nor have I witnessed Microsoft change their unfair antitrust practices, update their security, or show any concern for their users. It is far past time that Microsoft was held accountable and made to change through regulation or legislation.

While I had read the news about the hack of high-ranking U.S. Government emails officials last summer, I was extremely alarmed by the follow-up report released by the Department of Homeland Security in April. The revelation of several operational and strategic failures, security lapses, which the report said “collectively points to a corporate culture that deprioritized both enterprise security investments and rigorous risk management.”

Despite that bombshell, the U.S government continues to use their products because it’s nearly impossible for users to consider switching over to another software company. This is in large part due to the anti-competitive and anti-consumer nature of Microsoft.

“Microsoft has proved that all they care about is having their products dominate. This forces all users, including the U.S. government, to stay with the unsatisfactory product that has been hacked far too many times. ”

From tying their products and forcing users to own several of their products or none at all to including obstacles to transferring data or terms of contracts that make using other Cloud service extremely difficult , Microsoft has proved that all they care about is having their products dominate. This forces all users, including the U.S. government, to stay with the unsatisfactory product that has been hacked far too many times. Instead of focusing on improving their security, Microsoft chooses to focus on growing their monopoly and strengthening their presence in China, and for this reason, amongst several others, I find it hard to believe Microsoft cares about its users at all.

In addition to unfair practices, Microsoft has had sensitive correspondence and information stolen twice in the past year from China and Russia, was supposedly not aware of the hacks, and then proceeded to say very little about the crimes. Perhaps worst of all is the corporation admitting that they share their software code with other countries' governments, which the company claims is for inspection purposes.

When even the data of high-ranking U.S. government officials and federal agencies is not sufficiently protected, what does that say about the rest of the users? You would think the American company would proceed to distance themselves from the aggressors, and though Microsoft did briefly consider shuttering their AI lab in China after appeals from several U.S. politicians, including Senator Mark Warner, the company instead chose to continue their usual business.

The U.S should take a page from the E.U. and Australia and have the FTC investigate the company or Congress should introduce legislation to protect all consumers.

I believe the company should need to change their harmful behavior through legislation that not only supports competition and prevents this giant corporation from continuing unhindered with their anti-user and antitrust practices, but also stops it from continuing such a dangerous relationship with China.

Anthony Spinella is a former Town Councilman in the town of Wethersfield, CT.