Microsoft Faces Double Trouble as Pre-Owned Software License Claims Converge

ValueLicensing (VL), a reseller of pre-owned Microsoft software licenses, has been invited to attend two case management conferences in separate claims against the tech giant. The first is related to VL's own £270 million lawsuit filed in 2021, which alleges Microsoft restricted the supply of surplus Office licenses for resale. A second claim, worth between £1.3 billion and £3.5 billion, has been filed on behalf of over two million UK customers alleging similar restrictions.

Both cases are before the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT), with VL's case significantly further advanced than the class action led by Alexander Wolfson. The September 15 case management conference may address how the two proceedings intersect and whether the class action should be stayed pending judgment in the more advanced ValueLicensing case.

Kate Pollock, head of competition litigation at law firm Stewarts, stated earlier this year that Microsoft's alleged restrictive licensing practices 'had a profound and costly impact on millions of individuals and private and public sector organizations'.