These collectives argue Microsoft unfairly locks customers into Azure, or makes it difficult or too expensive to run its software in rival clouds – such as Amazon Web Services, or AWS – and thus the Windows maker should be taken to task by watchdogs and possibly even blocked from competing for government deals and other IT contracts.
Despite the insistence of these organizations that they operate independently, Bloomberg claims a review of tax records and business documents and interviews indicates “Amazon Web Services plays a direct role in shaping their efforts in ways that would boost the cloud giant.”
“For AWS, trade associations provide an efficient way to engage with the community, gather feedback, and talk with a variety of stakeholders about the technologies, practices, and policies impacting our customers.”
Kellogg declared that AWS is proud to support a variety of such groups – including the aforementioned Alliance for Digital Innovation, Cloud Infrastructure Service Providers in Europe, the Coalition for Fair Software Licensing, and dozens of other trade associations like the Computer & Communications Industry Association, Data Center Coalition, Information Technology Industry Council, Professional Services Council, and the US Chamber of Commerce.
Last year, for example, CNBC reported that Amazon and Google had funded an apparent grassroots movement of small business owners who opposed oversight of Big Tech.
It should be said, however, that there are times when quiet support for lobbying efforts that attack a dominant market rival may be necessary – to avoid retaliation, and to keep the focus on the merits of the proposed intervention, for instance.
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