Microsoft will introduce a new version of its Microsoft 365 and Office 365 subscription service that excludes Teams, breaking up a group following scrutiny from the EU regulator and complaints from rival Slack.
The move comes on the heels of Microsoft agreeing to sell its Office 365 suite without Microsoft Teams offerings in the EU and Switzerland last year. The company introduced Teams as a free offering of its Office 365 suite in 2017.
Microsoft has enjoyed an unfair advantage by combining the two offerings, several companies have argued. Slack, which is owned by Salesforce, called the move “illegal,” claiming that Microsoft forced Teams installation on customers with its market-dominant productivity suite and hid the true cost of the chat and video service.
In a statement to Reuters, Microsoft said the unbundling “also addresses the European Commission's comments by providing multinational companies with more flexibility when they wish to consolidate purchases across geographies.”
Reuters reported that Microsoft will introduce its new Office 365 lineup on Monday. Microsoft had not implemented the change at the time of publication.
TechCrunch has reached out to Microsoft for more details. We'll update the story when we learn more.
