UK to examine cloud services dominated by Amazon, Microsoft and Google
3D printed clouds and figurines are seen in front of the AWS (Amazon Web Service) cloud service logo in this illustration taken February 8, 2022. PHOTO: REUTERS
Britain said it would investigate competition in cloud services, a market dominated by the "hyperscalers" Amazon (AMZN.O), Microsoft (MSFT.O) and Alphabet's Google (GOOGL.O), which together account for around 81% of revenue.
Communications regulator Ofcom also said on Thursday it would examine other digital markets over the next year, including messaging services such as WhatsApp, FaceTime and Zoom, and connected televisions and smart speakers.
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It said if it concluded the cloud market was not working well it could recommendation policy changes, take enforcement action or ask the competition regulator to investigate.
It plans to publish a final report within 12 months, it said.