The FTC Demands Info On Past Deals From Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google & Microsoft
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is demanding information from Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Microsoft on their mergers over the past nine years, significantly increasing the pressure on the tech industry’s biggest players amid growing antitrust scrutiny, reported The Wall Street Journal.
The agency announced on Tuesday, February 11, that it issued the investigative subpoenas to the companies, seeking details on deals that fall below the threshold of normal federal antitrust reviews, as part of a study into acquisitions of startups.
The FTC has been particularly focused on re-examining mergers that already have been approved by the government. That re-examination could eventually lead the FTC to try to unwind deals that it finds to be having anticompetitive effects now, officials have said.
According to the Journal, the FTC action reflects growing concern in Washington and around the country that some US tech companies have grown so large and powerful that they have begun to squelch competition in various ways and harm consumers.
In a joint statement, the two Democrats on the five-member panel urged the Commission to study “consumer protection issues arising from the privacy and data security practices of technology companies, including social media platforms.”
“In particular, we encourage the FTC to study whether and, if so, how content curation and targeted advertising practices impact data collection, use, and sharing,” said the statement from Commissioners Christine S. Wilson and Rohit Chopra.
Featured News
DOJ and FTC Introduce Website for Reporting Anti-Competitive Healthcare Practices
Apr 18, 2024 by
CPI
US Congress Advances Legislation to Compel TikTok Sale
Apr 18, 2024 by
CPI
UK Financial Sector Advocates Enhanced Regulatory Accountability
Apr 18, 2024 by
CPI
Google and All 50 States Defend $700 Million Consumer Settlement
Apr 18, 2024 by
CPI
Colorado Enacts First Law to Protect Consumer Brainwave Data
Apr 18, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – Economics of Criminal Antitrust
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Navigating Economic Expert Work in Criminal Antitrust Litigation
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
The Increased Importance of Economics in Cartel Cases
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
A Law and Economics Analysis of the Antitrust Treatment of Physician Collective Price Agreements
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Information Exchange In Criminal Antitrust Cases: How Economic Testimony Can Tip The Scales
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI