SAP SE, Europe's largest software manufacturer, has proposed concessions to address the European Union's antitrust concerns regarding its business practices, according to sources with direct knowledge of the matter. The company is attempting to avoid potential investigations and fines.

Germany-based SAP SE is a global leader in enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, which companies use to manage finances, human resources, supply chains, sales, and procurement operations.

For years, SAP SE has been under scrutiny from the European Commission. Previously, several companies have raised concerns about software vendors, including complex terms and licensing conditions, bundling of applications that lead to increased costs, and difficulties when switching to competing suppliers.

Sources indicate that SAP SE has proposed a solution to address regulatory concerns stemming from some complaints related to ERP software. Due to the sensitive nature of the matter, these sources requested anonymity and did not disclose further details about the proposed solution.

The European Commission, which serves as the EU's competition regulator, could impose fines of up to 10% of a company's global annual revenue if SAP SE fails to address the commission's concerns and subsequently faces investigation.

Both SAP SE and the European Commission declined to comment on the matter.

In 2022, EU regulators sent questionnaires to multiple companies, inquiring about SAP SE's and Oracle Corporation's ERP after-sales support services, as well as the ease of switching to competing suppliers.

Oracle did not respond to requests for comment.

The questionnaire also asked respondents whether they could independently choose to continue support service contracts with original suppliers or switch to competitors, whether they could freely select needed support services, and what obstacles they might face during the selection process.

Additionally, the European Commission sought to understand the difficulty companies face when migrating from on-premises services to cloud solutions, and whether SAP SE and Oracle engage in behavior that disparages competitors.

Common remedial measures for addressing such issues typically include providing companies with greater flexibility in obtaining service contracts for required software and reducing the difficulty of switching to competing suppliers.

In June, SAP SE requested the U.S. Supreme Court to review a ruling that requires the company to face a lawsuit filed by Teradata Corporation, which alleges that SAP SE violated antitrust laws.