Microsoft, the world’s largest software company, has prohibited cryptocurrency mining using its online services. This ban went into effect on December 1st.
The development was part of the company’s update of its Universal License Terms for Online Services. Little information is available about the company’s decision to upgrade its online services, and the change was not made public.
The company modified its Acceptable Use of Policy on December 14th, alongside other policies, to secure its ecosystem. The new update prohibits crypto mining except with an approval message from Microsoft. It reads,
“The Acceptable Use Policy has been updated to explicitly prohibit mining for cryptocurrencies across all Microsoft Online Services unless written pre-approval is granted by Microsoft.”
The Register, a news outlet, contacted Microsoft to inquire about why the rule was implemented and under what conditions a user can mine cryptocurrency. At press time, Microsoft had yet to respond to the firm.
Other cloud hosting and software companies, including Google Cloud, Oracle, and OVH, have banned crypto mining on their platforms. Digital Ocean, a cloud company, allows cryptocurrency mining with written permission.
Earlier this year, Minecraft, a game owned by Microsoft, banned the use of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the game servers to protect players and allow them access to the same content. Minecraft claims NFTs create scarcity models and are against the guidelines of the game. The company prefers that everyone in the community access the same content.
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