germanys antitrust regulator is reviewing s market power in a move that could lead to an investigation of the us tech giants business practices and potential bans if they are found to damage competition the bundeskartellamt said it would decide whether microsoft should be designated as a company of paramount significance for competition across markets such a finding would allow us to take action at an early stage and prohibit possible anticompetitive practices bundeskartellamt president andreas mundt said a microsoft spokesperson said as a major technology company we are mindful of our heightened responsibility to support a healthy competitive environment we will engage constructively with the bundeskartellamt as they seek to understand our role in digital markets the spokesperson added in an emailed statement the proceedings mark the first stage in a twostep process and do not yet entail an assessment of specific practices at the company the regulator said in a statement if complaints or other information suggest that there are indications of microsoft engaging in potentially anticompetitive practices a separate decision will have to be issued in this matter also in consultation with the european commission and possibly other competition authorities it said the german authority has already declared google parent alphabet and facebook owner meta companies of paramount significance for competition across marketsfacebooktwitterlinkedinend of article10910131298799128