SAP optimistic about EU competition proceedings

In a press release on Friday, SAP reaffirms that its long-standing policies comply with industry standards. In a proposed solution recently submitted to the European Commission, the company has explained its practices and committed to transparency and customer choice. The proceedings only concern aspects of maintenance and support policies for on-premise solutions and have no impact on the group's cloud offerings.

Billions in fines averted?

The company strictly adheres to the procedure and timeline set by the European Commission and is confident that the matter will be concluded swiftly and fairly. No material impact on financial results is expected. The proceedings opened in September could have meant a fine of up to 3.4 billion euros for the company.

On Friday, the EU Commission initiated a so-called market investigation into commitments made by the software group. This is intended to settle an ongoing competition investigation in which SAP is accused of blocking the market for maintenance and support. Consequently, the EU Commission could close the proceedings without imposing a fine.

According to the Handelsblatt , SAP is proposing to offer customers more choice in maintenance and support providers for its Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software in the future. Furthermore, the group is hinting at greater flexibility in software licenses and the waiving of certain license fees.

(jes)