BRUSSELS, Sept 1 - European competition authorities are scrutinizing the licensing arrangements used by Oracle, a U.S. cloud computing company, a person familiar with the matter said.
The European Commission has begun seeking information from third parties about Oracle's licensing practices, the person said. That outreach is intended to enable regulators either to assemble evidence that could support formal action or to conclude there is no basis for enforcement.
Oracle did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
A Commission spokesperson said: "The commission will continue to monitor possible further anticompetitive practices and abusive conduct in this sector. At this stage, however, there is no formal investigation into any company."
The current focus on Oracle follows a separate, recently settled case involving German rival SAP. In July, SAP offered concessions designed to make it easier for customers to switch to competing service providers or to terminate contracts early. Those concessions allowed SAP to avoid a potential fine that could have reached as much as 10% of its global annual turnover.
News agency MLex was reported to have been first to flag that EU authorities were scrutinizing Oracle's licensing arrangements.
Context and process
The collecting of information from third parties is a preliminary step that can either underpin a formal investigation if evidence of wrongdoing emerges, or lead regulators to drop the matter if the information does not support further action. The Commission's statement indicates monitoring is ongoing across the sector, but that no formal probe into any company has been opened at this stage.
Implications for industry participants
Enterprise software vendors, cloud service providers and large corporate customers are the most directly affected groups mentioned in the developments described. The EU's approach in the SAP case - securing behavioral concessions to preserve customer mobility and contract exit options - is the closest precedent cited in the material made available so far.
Reporting note
At present the available information is limited to the Commission's outreach to third parties, the Commission spokesperson's public comment and the earlier SAP settlement. Further developments would depend on what the Commission learns from third-party responses and whether those responses point to evidence warranting a formal investigation.