The European Commission opened a formal antitrust investigation into the after-market, warning that SAP may have “restricted” competition and piled costs onto customers. Europe has put SAP under the microscope for how it sells maintenance and support for on-premises software.

European Commission, competition chief, Teresa Ribera said: “We are concerned that SAP may have restricted competition in this crucial after-market, by making it harder for rivals to compete, leaving European customers with fewer choices and higher costs.”

Regulators are poring over rules that allegedly force customers to buy support from SAP alone, frustrate mixing providers, and auto-extend licences that keep fees flowing.

They flagged claims that SAP blocks customers from terminating support for shelf-ware and slaps stiff reinstatement charges on those returning after a pause.

SAP, headquartered in Walldorf, insisted it plays by the book and is shifting more of its business to cloud while still minting serious cash from on-prem support.

SAP said its “policies and actions are fully in line with competition rules” and that it would work with Brussels to “resolve the issues raised.”

The group’s market value sits at €275bn, and 2024 software support revenue hit €11.3bn on overall sales of €34.2bn, which shows why this market matters.

Shares dipped almost two per cent after the announcement, although SAP said the talks should not materially dent its numbers.

The EU has sniffed around SAP’s support playbook for years, even asking customers in 2022 how easy it was to switch away from SAP or Oracle to third-party vendors.

SAP added that its policies are “based on long-standing standards that are common across the global software sector,” their spokesperson said.