The Competition Commission of India (CCI) is reviewing whether Microsoft and Google are breaking competition rules by bundling artificial intelligence (AI) features to their respective office software packages. For context, the regulator is checking if this practice could harm fair competition in India’s digital market, according to a report by Financial Express.
The CCI is looking into possible violations under Sections 3(4) and 4 of the Competition Act, 2002, which deal with anti-competitive agreements and abuse of dominant position.
The competition regulator’s current review is at an advanced stage. If it finds enough evidence, it may order a formal probe through its investigation arm. And the outcome could affect other firms like Zoho and HubSpot, which provide standalone productivity and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools.
“The CCI is internally studying the matter, and it might potentially translate into a detailed investigation. It is trying to build a case against the two Big Tech firms considering that such bundling could have an adverse impact on the companies offering standalone services like office suite,” a source told the Financial Express.
For context, Google Workspace introduced its generative AI features In January 2025, including Gemini, NotebookLM, and AI tools in Gmail, Docs, and Meet, as part of its business and enterprise plans. Elsewhere in March 2023, Microsoft added its AI assistant Copilot to its Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, and other Microsoft 365 applications.
How CCI Assesses Bundling Cases
In earlier cases, the CCI has held that for bundling to be considered anti-competitive, the tied and tying products must be separate, the company involved must hold a dominant position in the tying product’s market, and customers should have little choice but to take the tied product. Such an arrangement must also be capable of restricting or foreclosing competition in the relevant market.
Policy Context Around Bundling in India
The Draft Digital Competition Bill (DCB) prohibits large digital platforms, designated as Systemically Significant Digital Enterprises (SSDEs), from practices like self-preferencing, restricting third-party apps, and bundling products or services with their core offerings. It specifically bars SSDEs from requiring or incentivising users to take additional products or services unless they are integral to the core service. Notably, the CCI has the final say regarding what is “integral” to an SSDE.
Similarly, the Standing Committee on Finance’s 25th Report on the Implementation of the Competition Act, 2002, flagged tying and bundling as common strategies used by Big Tech firms to reinforce their dominance, limit consumer choice, and foreclose competition.
It noted how pre-installed services deter users from seeking alternatives and make it harder for rivals to reach consumers. While the CCI acknowledged in its submissions that…
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