{"id":37802,"date":"2023-12-12T10:29:26","date_gmt":"2023-12-12T10:29:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/microsoft-openai-tie-up-comes-under-antitrust-scrutiny"},"modified":"2023-12-12T10:36:49","modified_gmt":"2023-12-12T10:36:49","slug":"microsoft-openai-tie-up-comes-under-antitrust-scrutiny","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/microsoft-openai-tie-up-comes-under-antitrust-scrutiny","title":{"rendered":"Microsoft, OpenAI tie-up comes under antitrust scrutiny"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Mauritius. <\/strong><\/span>Microsoft\u2019s (MSFT. O) partnership with ChatGPT maker OpenAI is under scrutiny from antitrust regulators in the UK and the United States, according to a statement from the British regulator and a media report.<\/p>\n

Microsoft said last month it would take a non-voting position on the board of OpenAI, following a dramatic boardroom battle that saw the sudden ouster and return of CEO and founder Sam Altman.<\/p>\n

Microsoft, which owns 49% of the for-profit subsidiary of the startup, has committed to investing more than $10 billion in OpenAI. The U. K. Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said on Friday it will review whether to launch a merger probe of Microsoft\u2019s investment in OpenAI to see if it could hurt UK competition.<\/p>\n

The U. S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is also examining the nature of Microsoft\u2019s investment in OpenAI, and whether it may violate antitrust laws, Bloomberg News reported on Friday, citing a person familiar with the matter.<\/p>\n

Microsoft has recently tangled with both the FTC and the CMA on its acquisition of videogame publisher Activision Blizzard over antitrust concerns. The FTC\u2019s inquiries are preliminary and the agency hasn\u2019t opened a formal investigation, according to the report.<\/p>\n

The two companies and the FTC, which had declined to comment on the CMA\u2019s move, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the report. \u201cThere have recently been a number of developments in the governance of OpenAI, some of which involved Microsoft,\u201d the CMA said on Friday.<\/p>\n

Microsoft owns 49% of the for-profit operating company, according to sources familiar with the matter. OpenAI has a non-profit parent which owns 2%, those sources said.<\/p>\n

The speed at which the use of AI technology is growing is unrivalled in economic history, while advances in powerful foundation models, such as the one underpinning ChatGPT mean that this is a pivotal moment in the development of this transformative technology, the CMA said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe only thing that has changed is that Microsoft will now have a non-voting observer on OpenAI\u2019s board, which is very different from an acquisition such as Google\u2019s purchase of DeepMind in the UK,\u201d said Microsoft vice-chair and president Brad Smith in a statement, taking a swipe at its main rival.<\/p>\n

He said the company will work closely with the CMA. OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the CMA\u2019s move. The observer position means Microsoft\u2019s representative can attend OpenAI\u2019s board meetings and access confidential information, but it does not have voting rights on matters including electing or choosing directors.<\/p>\n

MOVE QUICKLY Max von Thun, Europe director at Open Markets Institute, a non-profit organisation focused on strengthening antitrust law, said other regulators could follow the CMA given the growing concentration in AI.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is essential that antitrust authorities move quickly to investigate these deals, including unwinding them if necessary, to preserve competition and prevent this critical emerging technology from being monopolised.<\/p>\n

European Union antitrust regulators said they have been following \u201cvery closely the situation of control\u201d at OpenAI, including recent management changes as well as Microsoft\u2019s investment in the company and its role on the AI firm\u2019s board. Britain\u2019s CMA on Friday kickstarted its review with an invitation to interested parties like Google (GOOGL. O) to comment by Jan. 3 2024.<\/p>\n

A range of transactions and arrangements may constitute a relevant merger situation, including, for example, the acquisition of a minority shareholding or, in some circumstances, commercial arrangements such as outsourcing arrangements, the CMA said.<\/p>\n

The CMA will review whether the partnership has resulted in an acquisition of control. That refers to one party having material influence, de facto control or more than 50% of the voting rights over another entity or change in the nature of control by one entity over another.<\/p>\n

The CMA will need to find evidence that the recent fall-out from the Altman affair has led to material changes in the governance of Open AI and Microsoft\u2019s influence over its affairs, said Alex Haffner, competition lawyer and partner at Fladgate.<\/p>\n

Even if it doesn\u2019t pursue a full probe, the preliminary investigation will better inform the CMA\u2019s broader oversight of the fast-developing AI sector, he said.<\/p>\n

The CMA, which has made global headlines with a combative approach since Britain\u2019s departure from the European Union, blocked Microsoft\u2019s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the \u201cCall of Duty\u201d video game maker, earlier in the year to the fury of the two U. S. companies. It later changed its mind after Microsoft amended its acquisition plan.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Mauritius<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Mauritius. Microsoft\u2019s (MSFT. O) partnership with ChatGPT maker OpenAI is under scrutiny from antitrust regulators in the UK and the United States, according to a statement from the British regulator and a media report. Microsoft said last month it would take a non-voting position on the board of OpenAI, following a dramatic boardroom […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":37801,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,9],"tags":[233,245,241,1798],"class_list":["post-37802","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-miscellaneous","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-mauritius","tag-mauritius","tag-microsoft"],"yoast_head":"\nMicrosoft, OpenAI tie-up comes under antitrust scrutiny - Mauritius<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Microsoft\u2019s (MSFT. 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