Amazon doesn’t commit to putting Bezos before antitrust committee
Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, visiting India in February.
Sajjad Hussain / Getty Images
Amazon offered to send one of its executives to speak to a Congress cartel committee on Friday, but it hasn’t said whether CEO and founder Jeff Bezos would show it.
The company responded to members of the US House of Representatives on May 1 asked Bezos to testify in front of them. Your request was initiated by a Wall Street Journal items Amazon employees had repeatedly accessed individual seller sales data on the e-commerce giant’s website after deciding which Amazon brand products to launch. If the journal’s report is correct, the practice could have given Amazon an unfair advantage over smaller retailers on its website, raising concerns in the Cartel Committee that the company may have misused its dominant position in Internet commerce.
Amazon said it had policies against access to individual seller data, but found that its trademark employees research aggregated total sales and search volume data. It is said to investigate the allegations mentioned in the journal story and plan to report what it finds out to the committee.
But while Amazon struggled to show that it was working with the committee, it didn’t say whether Bezos would appear in front of the panel.
“We are still ready to provide the committee with the appropriate Amazon executive to address these important issues.” Brian Huseman, The Vice President of Public Order at Amazon, wrote in a three-page letter that was sent out on Friday.
No one is above the law, no matter how rich or powerful.
We have asked Mr. Bezos to testify before the US Congress about Amazon’s troubling business practices and false statements, and we expect him to do so.
Whether he does this voluntarily or by subpoena is his choice.
– David Cicilline (@davidcicilline) May 15, 2020
Deputy David Cicilline, the Democratic chairman of the Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law of the House Justice, reiterated his position on Friday Bezos would be summoned if necessary, tweets: “Nobody is above the law, no matter how rich or powerful.” He had said the same thing last week in an interview with Politico.
In this interview, Cicilline said he expected the CEOs of Apple, Facebook, and Google Parent Alphabet to appear.
The back and forth shows how antitrust concerns about the country’s largest technology companies remain in the midst of this situation the coronavirus pandemic. Regulatory and policy investigations into these companies had increased over the past year, increasing the potential of new regulations for these huge organizations.
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What happened to amazon
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However, during the COVID-19 pandemic and the months of orders that are left at home, these companies enjoyed renewed enthusiasm among consumers. Facebook provided opportunities for people to connect, Apple provided entertainment, and Amazon delivered food and staple goods.
However, the antitrust investigation continues. David Cicilline said last week that he expected to report later this year. The journal also reported Friday that the Justice Department and Attorney General are planning one Antitrust proceedings against Google this year.
