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US: Senators want “serious” fines for antitrust breaches

By  |  August 4, 2019

US Senators Amy Klobuchar and Richard Blumenthal introduced legislation on Friday, August 2, to allow harsher penalties for companies that violate antitrust law, following a Justice Department probe into alleged anticompetitive behavior by big tech.

The “Monopolization Deterrence Act” by the Democratic senators would allow the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission to seek civil penalties for monopolization offenses under US antitrust law, Klobuchar’s office said in a statement.

US antitrust enforcers are scrutinizing tech giants Facebook, Alphabet’s Google, Amazon, and Apple to probe allegations that they engage in anticompetitive behavior.

Klobuchar, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for president in 2020, said in the statement the legislation would allow “serious financial consequences” to combat the United States’ “major monopoly problem.”  Under the bill, the penalties could be as high as 15% of the company’s total US revenue.

Full Content: Reuters

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