Report: New antitrust order will target Big Tech

President Joe Biden is reportedly ready to sign an executive order that will increase antitrust scrutiny in major corporate sectors, including technology. 

According to CNBC, Biden will sign the new executive order, intended to curb anticompetitive activities by dominant companies in a range of industries that includes technology, at 1:30 p.m. ET on Friday, July 9. Specific elements that will impact Big Tech companies (such as Amazon, Apple, Google, Facebook, and Microsoft) include increased government focus on mergers and acquisitions involving dominant tech companies and smaller competitors, restoring “Net neutrality” regulations guaranteeing access to all online content at the same speed, banning or limiting non-compete agreements, and limiting how technology companies collect user data.

“The impulse for this executive order is really around where can we encourage greater competition across the board,” said White House chief economic advisor Brian Deese in an exclusive interview with CNBC.

The federal government began increasing its antitrust activities in the technology sector in 2019, when the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) agreed to split up regulatory oversight of tech giants Amazon, Google, Facebook, and Apple.