LibreOffice Foundation Criticizes Microsoft Office Formats

The Document Foundation has criticized Microsoft again, arguing that Office formats such as DOCX, XLSX, and PPTX create vendor lock-in and weaken digital sovereignty.

The organization, which oversees LibreOffice, says users and institutions should rely on open standards instead of technologies controlled by a single software company.

TDF Raises New Concerns About Microsoft Office Formats

Microsoft Office primarily saves documents using Office Open XML, commonly known as OOXML.

These formats include DOCX for Word documents, XLSX for Excel spreadsheets, and PPTX for PowerPoint presentations.

The Document Foundation argues that OOXML is not sufficiently independent from Microsoft. Although the formats have published specifications, Microsoft can introduce extensions or application-specific behavior that competing office suites may struggle to reproduce.

TDF says this gives Microsoft significant control over how documents appear and function.

Compatibility Problems Can Encourage Vendor Lock-In

Documents created in Microsoft Office may not always appear identical when opened in LibreOffice or another office suite.

Users may encounter missing or substituted fonts, changes to page layouts, incorrect spacing or alignment, altered spreadsheet formatting, and presentation elements that move or display differently than intended.

The Document Foundation argues that these compatibility problems create friction for users attempting to leave Microsoft Office.

When a file does not display correctly in another application, users may return to Microsoft Office to preserve the original formatting. TDF says this strengthens Microsoft’s position and makes switching software more difficult.

TDF Warns About Digital Sovereignty

The Document Foundation says vendor-controlled document formats can reduce digital sovereignty.

TDF argues that open formats give organizations greater freedom to change software providers while keeping access to their documents.

A genuinely open standard can also allow multiple independent developers to create compatible applications without depending on one company’s implementation decisions.

Governments and Businesses Face Greater Risks

Minor formatting differences may only cause inconvenience for individual users.

The consequences can become more serious in government, legal, financial, and public-sector environments. These organizations may need to preserve contracts, official records, court documents, reports, and public information for decades.

Incorrect formatting could change how tables, signatures, legal clauses, or financial data appear.

TDF says organizations should not rely completely on one company to maintain document compatibility over long periods.

Long-Term Document Preservation Remains a Concern

The Document Foundation also questions what could happen if Microsoft eventually reduces support for older formats, fonts, or Office-specific technologies.

Organizations with large document archives could face problems opening or accurately displaying historic files.

Open formats aim to reduce this risk because multiple software developers can implement and maintain support for them.

This can make long-term document access less dependent on the commercial decisions of a single vendor.

TDF Promotes ODF as an Alternative

The Document Foundation supports the OpenDocument Format, or ODF, as an alternative to Microsoft Office formats.

LibreOffice uses formats such as ODT for text documents, ODS for spreadsheets, and ODP for presentations.

TDF argues that combining open document formats, open-source office software, and open fonts can provide greater independence and improve long-term access to information.

Its position is that governments, businesses, and individuals should avoid building document systems around technologies controlled by one company.

Microsoft Has Faced Similar Criticism Before

This is not the first time The Document Foundation has criticized Microsoft.

TDF previously raised concerns about OOXML and argued that its complexity and Microsoft-specific behavior make full compatibility difficult for competing software.

The organization has also criticized Microsoft Office’s Ribbon interface, suggesting that users may confuse familiarity with a particular product design for general office software skills.

The debate has also expanded into European technology policy. European institutions have increasingly discussed open standards and digital sovereignty, while some organizations have moved toward OpenDocument Format following criticism of dependence on Microsoft Excel and XLSX files.

The latest criticism continues TDF’s broader campaign for open formats, open-source software, and document systems that do not depend on a single technology provider.