The European Commission is considering whether Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure should face additional obligations under the Digital Markets Act. Meanwhile, the EU Data Act already provides cloud-switching protections. Understanding the difference matters for organizations managing cloud dependencies.
Imagine a company whose product runs on Azure. Its code sits in containers, but the production system also relies on Azure’s identity setup, a managed database, an event service and monitoring tools. This hypothetical company is the example used throughout this article.
Moving that product to another provider is rarely as simple as copying its data, because each of those services works differently elsewhere. So when the European Union acts on cloud competition, the practical question is whether leaving gets easier. The honest answer has two parts, and one of them has not been decided yet.
On June 25, 2026, the European Commission announced its preliminary view that AWS and Azure should be designated as gatekeepers under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), the EU law that regulates large platforms acting as gateways between businesses and their customers. That was not a final designation. It is also not the only EU rule that matters here, because the EU Data Act already contains requirements intended to make switching between cloud providers easier.
Why is the European Commission examining AWS and Azure?
A platform that the DMA designates as a gatekeeper takes on extra obligations, and cloud computing is among the services that can fall within its scope. On November 18, 2025, the Commission opened three cloud-related market investigations. Two examine whether AWS and Azure should be designated as gatekeepers. The third evaluates whether existing DMA obligations adequately address competition concerns in cloud computing.
In June 2026, the Commission reached a preliminary position supporting the designation of both services, even though they do not meet the usual quantitative designation thresholds. It pointed to several factors:
- Their established positions in the European cloud market.
- High switching costs and customer dependencies.
- Large service ecosystems.
- The growing importance of AI tools and partnerships in cloud purchasing decisions.
These are factors in the Commission’s preliminary assessment, not final findings of unlawful conduct. The Commission has informed Amazon and Microsoft of its preliminary view, and the final decisions have not yet been made.
Sources: European Commission, June 25, 2026, November 18, 2025 and Digital Markets Act: EU Citizens Q&A.
What would a cloud gatekeeper designation change?
Amazon and Microsoft are already designated as DMA gatekeepers for other services. Amazon’s designations include its marketplace and advertising services, and Microsoft’s include Windows PC OS and LinkedIn. Those designations do not automatically extend to AWS and Azure, and the Commission’s register of gatekeepers lists no cloud computing service as designated.
For that to change, the Commission would need to issue separate final decisions. If it does, the Commission’s overview of the DMA says a designated gatekeeper has a maximum of six months after the decision to comply with the obligations.
Sources: European Commission, DMA gatekeepers and Digital Markets Act overview.
Which obligations would apply, and how they would be read for cloud computing, is not settled. The Commission has said its separate market investigation of the DMA’s suitability for cloud will cover, for instance, obstacles to interoperability between cloud services, limited or conditioned access for business users to data, tying and bundling of services, and potentially imbalanced contract terms. Those are questions the Commission is examining, not conclusions it has reached about AWS or Azure.
A final gatekeeper designation would not automatically make proprietary cloud APIs interchangeable or remove every commercial and technical barrier to migration. In the Azure example, the identity setup, the database and the event service would still be specific to Azure after any designation.
Final decisions needed
Amazon and Microsoft are already designated as DMA gatekeepers for other services. Those designations do not automatically extend to AWS and Azure, and the Commission’s register of gatekeepers lists no cloud computing service as designated. For that to change, the Commission would need to issue separate final decisions. If it does, the Commission’s overview of the DMA says a designated gatekeeper has a maximum of six months after the decision to comply with the obligations.
Areas of scrutiny
Which obligations would apply, and how they would be read for cloud computing, is not settled. The Commission has said its separate market investigation of the DMA’s suitability for cloud will cover, for instance, obstacles to interoperability between cloud services, limited or conditioned access for business users to data, tying and bundling of services, and potentially imbalanced contract terms. Those are questions the Commission is examining, not conclusions it has reached about AWS or Azure.
Not a technical fix
A final gatekeeper designation would not automatically make proprietary cloud APIs interchangeable or remove every commercial and technical barrier to migration. In the Azure example, the identity setup, the database and the event service would still be specific to Azure after any designation.
Sources: European Commission, November 18, 2025 and Digital Markets Act overview.
The EU Data Act already addresses cloud switching
The distinction cloud customers need to understand is this one. The DMA cloud investigations concern possible additional gatekeeper obligations. The EU Data Act already contains rules governing switching between data-processing services, including cloud services within its scope.
Data Act
The EU Data Act already contains rules governing switching between data-processing services, including cloud services within its scope. The Data Act has applied since September 12, 2025. Its Chapter VI requires providers of cloud and edge computing services to meet minimum requirements that facilitate interoperability and enable switching, and the Commission says all providers must remove obstacles that customers face when they want to switch or use several services at the same time.
DMA cloud case
The DMA cloud investigations concern possible additional gatekeeper obligations. On June 25, 2026, the European Commission announced its preliminary view that AWS and Azure should be designated as gatekeepers under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), the EU law that regulates large platforms acting as gateways between businesses and their customers. That was not a final designation.
The difference
The Data Act addresses switching obligations already in force, while the DMA investigation concerns additional competition obligations that may apply to AWS and Azure in the future.
The Data Act has applied since September 12, 2025. Its Chapter VI requires providers of cloud and edge computing services to meet minimum requirements that facilitate interoperability and enable switching, and the Commission says all providers must remove obstacles that customers face when they want to switch or use several services at the same time.
Charges are the part with a date. The Commission says the Data Act will remove switching charges entirely, including the fees for moving data out of a provider (data egress), from January 12, 2027. Until then, as a transitional measure, providers may still charge for the costs incurred in switching and data egress. All of this is subject to the regulation’s scope and exceptions.
| Requirement | Position as of November 6, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Data Act cloud-switching provisions | Already applicable, subject to their scope and exceptions |
| Switching charges | Providers may still charge for the costs incurred in switching and data egress until January 12, 2027 |
| January 12, 2027 | General prohibition on switching charges takes effect, subject to applicable exceptions |
| AWS/Azure DMA cloud gatekeeper designation | Still conditional on final Commission decisions |
| Additional cloud-specific DMA measures | Not established by the preliminary designation findings |
Removing switching charges is not the same as removing switching costs. Eliminating regulated provider-imposed charges does not eliminate the cost of rewriting applications, retraining teams or replacing proprietary services, and it does not automatically remove every charge associated with an existing contract. For the Azure company, free data egress would help with moving the data, but it would not rewrite the identity setup.
The Data Act also sets different technical requirements for different kinds of service. According to the Commission, providers of Platform and Software as a Service must make open interfaces available and, at a minimum, export data in a commonly used, machine-readable format. Providers of Infrastructure as a Service must take measures so that a customer switching to a service of the same type gets materially comparable outcomes for the features that both services share, which the Act calls functional equivalence. That is a narrower promise than moving any application unchanged, especially when it relies on features that only one provider offers.
Sources: European Commission, Data Act explained and Regulation (EU) 2023/2854, Chapter VI and Article 29.
What does this mean for cloud architecture?
Back to the company on Azure. Its containers can move, but its identity configuration, database, event service and operational tools are Azure-specific. The Data Act may help with covered contractual and technical switching obstacles, and a future DMA designation could affect particular provider practices. Neither requires cloud services to become technically identical, so neither removes the engineering work of replacing those components.
That makes portability a matter of architectural choices as well as regulation. Managed services can reduce development time, improve reliability and simplify operations, and those benefits may justify some dependence on a provider. The important decision is whether the organization understands that dependence and can respond if its business requirements change. Knowing who controls the systems you depend on is a wider question than where data is stored, as Sovereign AI Is More Than Data Residency explains.
The question is sharper for AI applications that combine model endpoints, retrieval systems, identity controls and data pipelines in one provider’s ecosystem. In its preliminary evaluation, the Commission described AI tools and partnerships as a decisive factor in cloud purchasing. That does not make integrated AI platforms inherently anticompetitive. It means their influence on customer choice is part of the wider competition assessment.
What should organizations do now?
The ongoing investigation does not create a reason to migrate workloads immediately or to adopt multi-cloud infrastructure solely for regulatory purposes. Three practical steps make more sense.
Understand existing dependencies. Identify which workloads use provider-specific databases, identity services, APIs, AI services and operational tooling, and estimate what would have to change during a migration. In the Azure example, that means listing the identity configuration, databases, event services and operational tools the application depends on.
Review switching terms. Examine contracts, applicable Data Act rights, data-export mechanisms, transition assistance, switching charges and any relevant exceptions. Legal and procurement teams should verify how the rules apply to individual arrangements.
Monitor final regulatory decisions. Track the Commission’s AWS and Azure investigations separately from the Data Act obligations already in effect. A future DMA decision may create additional requirements, but its scope should not be assumed in advance.
Understand dependencies
Identify which workloads use provider-specific databases, identity services, APIs, AI services and operational tooling, and estimate what would have to change during a migration. In the Azure example, that means listing the identity configuration, databases, event services and operational tools the application depends on.
Review switching terms
Examine contracts, applicable Data Act rights, data-export mechanisms, transition assistance, switching charges and any relevant exceptions. Legal and procurement teams should verify how the rules apply to individual arrangements.
Monitor decisions
Track the Commission’s AWS and Azure investigations separately from the Data Act obligations already in effect. A future DMA decision may create additional requirements, but its scope should not be assumed in advance.
No reason to rush
The ongoing investigation does not create a reason to migrate workloads immediately or to adopt multi-cloud infrastructure solely for regulatory purposes.
These steps help whether the organization plans to stay with its current provider, negotiate new terms or evaluate alternatives.
What happens next?
The Commission has not confirmed a final cloud gatekeeper designation for AWS or Azure in the official material reviewed for this article. The broader investigation into the DMA’s suitability for cloud markets also continues separately. In the meantime, the Data Act’s switching rules remain relevant, including the scheduled January 2027 change to switching charges.
For cloud customers, the distinction is clear: the Data Act addresses switching obligations already in force, while the DMA investigation concerns additional competition obligations that may apply to AWS and Azure in the future. Understanding both is more useful than treating regulation as a substitute for knowing how an organization’s cloud systems depend on their providers.
References and further reading
- European Commission, Preliminary position on AWS and Azure under the DMA. June 25, 2026.
- European Commission, Market investigations into cloud computing services under the DMA. November 18, 2025.
- European Commission, Digital Markets Act: EU Citizens Q&A. Official guidance on existing gatekeeper designations and the AWS/Azure investigations.
- European Commission, Data Act explained. Official explanation of cloud-switching rules.
- Regulation (EU) 2023/2854, Data Act. Chapter VI and Article 29.
- Regulation (EU) 2022/1925, Digital Markets Act. Governing legislation.
- European Commission, DMA gatekeepers. Official list of designated gatekeepers and their core platform services.
Source verification: November 6, 2026. The cloud designation remains preliminary in the official Commission records reviewed, and the Commission’s gatekeepers register lists no cloud computing service as designated. Legal and contractual implications depend on applicable provisions, scope and exceptions. Check the sources above before you act.