British antitrust regulators to probe Microsoft's $16-billion Nuance deal

The probe is over concerns that the deal could result in a "substantial lessening of competition" in the UK market.

British antitrust regulators are opening an investigation into Microsoft's $16 billion acquisition of speech recognition company Nuance in the latest sign they're tightening scrutiny of big technology deals.

The Competition and Markets Authority said in a brief statement Monday that it's looking into the purchase because of concerns that it could result in a "substantial lessening of competition" in the UK market.

Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft Corp, declined to comment. The company said in April that it was buying Nuance Communications Inc, a pioneer in voice-based AI technology. Nuance was instrumental in helping power Apple's Siri but later shifted to focus on health care.