Report: Four tech giants will testify in House antitrust hearing

7/9/2019
Regulatory heat is rising on Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google this summer.

According to the Washington Post, representatives of the highly influential technology and e-commerce companies will testify in a Washington, D.C., hearing held by the House Judiciary Committee’s antitrust panel on Tuesday, July 16. This move follows increasing calls for the federal government to determine if major technology platforms enjoy an unfair advantage in e-commerce and consumer Internet usage.

Last week, retailers including Walmart and Target signed a 10-page letter the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) sent to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requesting the FTC ensure that new, technology-enabled retail business practices receive antitrust scrutiny – and action if necessary. The letter specifically cited Amazon and Google as potentially having excessive control of online product search and consumer data.

In early June, multiple news reports indicated that the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) had agreed to split up antitrust oversight of tech giants Amazon, Google, Facebook, and Apple. In March 2019, presidential hopeful and Democratic senator from Massachusetts Elizabeth Warren publicly called for the federal government to break up the “monopolies” of Amazon, Google, and Facebook.

Amazon confirmed its participation in the hearing, while Apple, Facebook and Google declined comment. To read the full article, click here.
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