Internal documents from Google and Amazon provided to Politico show new examples of how companies favor their own products over competitors’ – adding ammunition to the push for Congress to toughen antitrust laws, Politico reported.
According to Politico, the documents, which include emails, memos and strategy papers, were shared by the House Judicial committee, which obtained them as part of its long-running antitrust investigation of Google, Apple, Amazon, and Meta that wrapped up in October 2020 with a 450-page staff report. The documents were cited in the report, but had not previously been made available.
The documents bolster the committee’s claims that the internet giants illegally favor their own products, a practice that pending legislation to update antitrust laws would make more difficult, Politico reported.
The U.S House Committee on The Judiciary posted a Press Release titled: “Judiciary Committee Publishes Final Report on Competition in the Digital Marketplace”. Here are some key points from the press release:
The House Judiciary Committee today formally published the Committee’s Report, entitled “Investigation of Competition in the Digital Marketplace: Committee Report and Recommendations.” The report was initially released in October 2020 as a Majority Staff Report following a 16-month investigation, led by the Antitrust Subcommittee, into the state of competition in the digital economy, with a focus on the challenges presented by the dominance of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google.
In April 2021, the Committee held a markup and formally adopted the Report. The Report totals more than 450 pages, detailing the findings and recommendations from a bipartisan investigation that included documents and communications from the investigated firms; submissions from 38 antitrust experts; and interviews with more than 240 market participants, former employees of the investigated firms, and other individuals.
The Verge reported that the documents show how Amazon and Google pressured independent sellers and smartphone manufacturers to favor their own products and platforms over those of their competitors. In a January 2014 email, one Google executive raised concerns over a potential new Samsung service that could compete with the company’s “core search experience.”
In another email, Google executives discuss how Amazon’s involvement changed the market for personal voice assistants. “Amazon has changed the dynamics here,” the heavily redacted email reads. “Amazon has built-in incentive to partner with Alexa since they will pull you from their store if you don’t support it.” The Verge reported.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the tech companies oppose the legislation, saying it would unnecessarily raise the costs of operating platforms that are popular because they benefit consumers and small businesses. According to The Wall Street Journal, lawmakers backing an antitrust bill targeting big tech companies ramped up their push for a vote by releasing internal tech company documents they say show anticompetitive behavior.
I’m not surprised that the big tech companies are engaging in shenanigans. There is a chance that they could face legal consequences if the vote on the antitrust legislation passes.
Source by geeknewscentral.com
