Microsoft confirms China probe over possible antitrust after four offices visited

Microsoft Confirms Antitrust Investigation by Chinese Authorities After Unprecedented Office Visits

Microsoft, a globally-known American tech company, confirmed their investigation by China’s business regulators yesterday. This confirmation came as rumors of potential antitrust violations circulated.

An undisclosed source informed Sina, a news portal, that investigators from the State Administration for Industry and Commerce unexpectedly visited Microsoft’s branches in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Chengdu.

The reason behind the unexpected visit remains ambiguous, but a subsequent report by Sina suggested that the critical issue might be possible anticompetitive practices.

This investigation into Microsoft occurs shortly after China’s antitrust regulator accused Qualcomm, a prominent international mobile chipmaker, of monopolizing the market.

Joan Li, Microsoft China’s spokesperson, validated the ongoing investigation through an email and pledged the company’s total cooperation with the investigation. Li did not provide extra details regarding the investigation’s focus. The attempts to get a comment from the administration yesterday were unsuccessful.

Interestingly, in May, the central government prohibited government agencies from using Windows 8, Microsoft’s latest operating system. Xinhua reports implied the ban was initiated to secure computer safety following Microsoft’s discontinuation of support for its popular Windows XP operating system on the mainland.

State-owned media station CCTV aired a severely critical show about Windows 8 less than two weeks later, insinuating its usage in data mining on Chinese citizens.

Recently, several foreign companies have become subjects of official investigations in China.

It was reported last May that Microsoft was under the United States Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission’s lens for allegations of bribery. It was claimed that Microsoft executives in China, Italy, and Romania tried to influence government officials for business benefits.

This Chinese incident was initially disclosed to US authorities in 2012 by an anonymous whistle-blower linked with Microsoft China. The whistle-blower alleged that a Microsoft executive persuaded them to pay bribes to government officials for acquiring business contracts.

Microsoft, with the aid of an external law firm, undertook an internal investigation into these allegations, but no evidence supporting the bribery claims was found.

This article was updated in 2025 to reflect current trends and insights.