Amazon faces EU inquiry over data from sellers
LONDON — Amazon faces a widening inquiry in Europe over whether it unfairly uses data collected from thirdparty sellers who rely on its service, the latest move by regulators around the world to curb the growing power of big technology companies.
The European Union’s top antitrust regulator said Wednesday that it had opened a formal antitrust investigation into whether Amazon was using the thirdparty data to promote its own products at the expense of other retailers. The announcement came a day after representatives of Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google were sharply criticized by lawmakers in Washington over the companies’ market dominance.
The announcement, by the European Commission, the bloc’s executive branch, is an incremental step in an inquiry into Amazon’s business practices that was described as “preliminary” in September. There is no hard deadline for the investigation to be completed and it could last for years.
“Ecommerce has boosted retail competition and brought more choice and better prices,” said Margrethe Vestager, Europe’s competition commissioner. “We need to ensure that large online platforms don’t eliminate these benefits through anticompetitive behavior.”
“We will cooperate fully with the European Commission and continue working hard to support businesses of all sizes and help them grow,” Amazon said.
The investigation announced Wednesday could eventually lead to fines for Amazon or demands that it change its business practices. A settlement could also be reached, or the case could be dropped.
Amazon’s website is the main storefront for many thirdparty merchants, with a substantial number paying a fee to store goods in the company’s warehouses and using its delivery network to ship products.
Yet thirdparty sellers have long suspected that if Amazon notices that a particular product is selling well, it comes up with its own version — and offers it at a lower price.
Regulators elsewhere have also been investigating Amazon. On Wednesday, Germany announced a settlement with the company over its treatment of thirdparty sellers. As a result, Amazon will face new rules over how it terminates or blocks outside sellers from its site, and it will have to cover more of the costs related to returns and reimbursements. The settlement also forces Amazon to accept more legal liability in its contracts with sellers. The changes will apply globally, according to German officials.