Mike Peterson
The U.S. House Judiciary Committee has formally approved its report that accuses Big Tech companies of engaging in anticompetitive practices to maintain market power.
After a monthslong investigation into market power in the technology industry, the House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee released its report in October 2020. The report called the power of Big Tech "monopolistic" and recommended sweeping changes.
On Thursday, the House Judiciary Committee voted 24-17 along party lines to formally approve the report, according to Reuters. As a result, the more than 400 pages will become an official committee report and a blueprint for legislative action.
"Amazon, Apple, Google, and Facebook each hold monopoly power over significant sectors of our economy. This monopoly moment must end," Rep. David Cicilline, the committee's chair, said in a statement. "Now that the Judiciary Committee has formally adopted our findings, I look forward to crafting legislation that addresses the significant concerns we have raised."
The committee is currently considering regulations and changes that could rein in the power of large technology companies. The first such bill has already been introduced. In March, a bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced legislation that would make it easier for news outlets to negotiate collectively with tech platforms.
Some of the proposals in the House's report include aggressive measures like barring companies from operating in markets in which they compete. It also includes tamer ideas like increasing the budgets and powers of market regulators and antitrust agencies.
In addition to the House report, the U.S. Senate has also been pushing toward antitrust reform. In March, Sen. Amy Klobuchar said she planned to hold hearings on the App Store and other potential areas of reform.
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William Gallagher
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AppleInsider Staff
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23 Comments
"Some of the proposals in the House's report include aggressive measures like barring companies from operating in markets in which they compete. It also includes tamer ideas like increasing the budgets and powers of market regulators and antitrust agencies."
So, that would bar Apple retail?
I feel like lawmakers need to do a bit of soul searching here, because the worst offenders got there by lobbying. Which will still be an issue when any new legislation is introduced. Sometimes these efforts just become opportunities to legally entrench the problem they were aiming to resolve. Government involvement can lead to harm in competition: we all saw how iBooks went down, giving Amazon more power and an even more damaging position, against what was a very mild offering from Apple.
And not to strike a tone in the image of 'whataboutism', but in the grand scheme of things that are harming Americans (and there's plenty) - these actions are so disproportionate with other forms of harm. Healthcare, student loans, lethal gun/police violence, disinformation and the resulting civil unrest... so lawmakers give us... a review of Netflix?
“And not to strike a tone in the image of 'whataboutism', but in the grand scheme of things that are harming Americans (and there's plenty) - these actions are so disproportionate with other forms of harm. Healthcare, student loans, lethal gun/police violence, disinformation and the resulting civil unrest... so lawmakers give us... a review of Netflix?”
Nailed it….