(DailyDig.com) – Amazon has been hit with antitrust action by the Federal Trade Commission, which claims the e-commerce and technology behemoth is a monopolist that employs anticompetitive practices to maintain its dominant market position.
After months of preparation, a complaint has been filed in federal court in the United States, seeking an indefinite restraining order to break Amazon’s monopoly and prevent the company from continuing its illegal practices.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the attorneys general of seventeen states have filed a lawsuit against Amazon, alleging that the company’s actions have allowed it to suppress innovation, lower quality for customers, prevent competitors from competing fairly with Amazon, prevent sellers and competitors from decreasing their prices, and overcharge sellers.
According to FTC Chairwoman Lina Khan, their lawsuit details how Amazon employed several abusive strategies to illegally preserve its market dominance. The complaint lays out specific allegations about how Amazon is abusing its monopoly power to harm the tens of millions of American consumers who shop on its platform and the countless businesses that depend on Amazon for customers to reach them.
Vice President of Global Public Policy and General Counsel at Amazon, David Zapolsky, said that the case is misguided both legally and factually. The retail sector as a whole has benefited from the increased creativity and rivalry with which the FTC is making erroneous efforts to curb those practices. It has resulted in better prospects for the many companies that sell via Amazon’s platform, as well as cheaper pricing, a wider range of products, and quicker shipping times for Amazon’s end users.
The complaint was approved by a vote of 3-0 by the FTC’s commissioners. Wisconsin, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Oklahoma, New York, New Mexico, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Nevada, Minnesota, Michigan, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Delaware, and Connecticut have all joined the lawsuit as attorneys general.
Meanwhile, in the U.S. District Court for Washington, DC, the Department of Justice’s monopoly case against Google is now in its third week of trial.
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