March 12 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission

is moving ahead with an antitrust probe of Microsoft ( MSFT )

that was opened in the waning days of the Biden administration,

Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar

with the matter.

The FTC staff have in the recent weeks been meeting

companies and other groups to gather information, the report

said. Microsoft ( MSFT ) and the FTC did not immediately respond to a

Reuters request for comment.

The FTC had last year opened a sweeping antitrust

investigation into Microsoft ( MSFT ), including into its software

licensing and cloud computing businesses, Reuters had reported

in November.

The investigation was approved by then FTC chair Lina Khan

ahead of her departure. Andrew Ferguson became the new chair

when President Donald Trump took office in January.

The FTC is examining allegations that Microsoft ( MSFT ) is

potentially abusing its market power in productivity software,

such as by imposing punitive licensing terms to prevent

customers from moving from its Azure cloud service to rival

platforms.

The agency has asked Microsoft ( MSFT ) details about its data

centers, its struggles to find enough computing power to meet

customer demand and information about licensing rule changes

expected later this year, the Bloomberg report said.

Microsoft's ( MSFT ) decision to cut funding on its own artificial

intelligence projects after striking a deal with OpenAI, is also

under scrutiny, the report said.

It has also been looking into Microsoft's ( MSFT ) practices related

to cybersecurity and artificial intelligence products.