Qwant Files Antitrust Complaint Against Microsoft Over Bing Practices

French search engine Qwant has filed a complaint with France’s antitrust authority, accusing Microsoft of deliberately harming its search result quality through Bing, the U.S. company’s search platform. According to sources familiar with the matter, Qwant is urging the watchdog to take interim action as it awaits the outcome of a broader investigation into Microsoft’s alleged practices.

Qwant, which has long relied on Bing’s infrastructure to power its own search results, claims that Microsoft’s changes have significantly degraded the quality of its services. The complaint seeks immediate regulatory intervention, citing potentially serious and irreparable damage to Qwant’s competitiveness in the European search market.

The French competition authority has begun preliminary steps by reaching out to other search engines for feedback. A decision on whether to proceed with interim measures and open a formal investigation is expected by September. Interim actions are only granted when there is sufficient evidence of market abuse causing urgent harm.

While Qwant and the French watchdog have declined public comment, Microsoft has dismissed the allegations, stating the complaint “lacks merit” and that the company is fully cooperating with the ongoing inquiry. The situation places Microsoft under renewed scrutiny amid growing tensions over Big Tech’s dominance in Europe.

This case also highlights the vulnerability of smaller European search firms, many of which depend on backend technology provided by tech giants like Microsoft. Should Microsoft reduce or withdraw syndication support, it could destabilize several smaller competitors. If found guilty of violating antitrust rules, Microsoft could face fines up to 10% of its global annual revenue.

Source: Reuters