China seeks information in ‘monopoly’ probe

China’s commerce regulator on Tuesday launched a further probe into Microsoft’s alleged anti-monopoly case, in a display of the country’s latest effort to enforce its Anti-Monopoly Law.

The SAIC expanded the probe into Microsoft’s media player and browser the following month.

Multinational companies have for years gone out of their way to curry favour with leaders in China, one of the world’s largest technology and consumer markets, which are overseen by rival regulatory agencies eager to score wins against high-profile foreign companies.

The State Administration of Industry and Commerce, or SAIC, did not say exactly what issues it was querying but the request appeared to be part of an investigation into the US software titan over its Windows operating system launched in mid-2014. The agency also asked executives to immediately submit complete explanatory materials following the questioning, the statement said. The SAIC investigation also included a Microsoft VP and senior managers.

In raids on company sites in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu the SAIC collected a trove of documents, emails and other data, it said at the time. After Microsoft retired XP, and confirmed that Chinese users would not get preferential treatment, authorities there banned the use of Windows 8 on government computers, a move some claimed was a reaction to the end of Windows XP’s support.

The U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm Inc. was fined 6.1 billion yuan ($975 million) by the Chinese regulator in February, 2015, after finding the company had violated anti-monopoly laws.

China reportedly had asked Microsoft to extend the lifespan of XP – continue serving security patches for the aged OS, in other words – if only to PRC customers.

“Asking questions is at least giving Microsoft a chance to explain all the details and the company has set up the partnership with CSC which is to show that they are willing to follow the government policy”, said Kitty Fok, director of research firm IDC China.