[SEATTLE, WA] – In a significant development for antitrust scrutiny in the tech sector, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has been formally requested to testify before the House Judiciary Committee. This demand comes amidst rising concerns over Amazon’s business practices, particularly highlighted by a recent report in the Wall Street Journal.
A bipartisan group of lawmakers, including U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), a member of the House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David N. Cicilline (D-RI), and U.S. Representatives F. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), Joe Neguse (D-CO), Ken Buck (R-CO), and Matt Gaetz (R-FL), jointly addressed a letter to Bezos. The letter, dated May 1, 2020, urges his appearance to address competition concerns directly related to Amazon’s operational conduct.
The Letter to Bezos: Demanding Answers on Amazon’s Practices
The core issue prompting this request is an April 23 Wall Street Journal report. This report alleges that Amazon utilized sensitive business data from its third-party sellers to create competing products. This revelation directly contradicts previous assurances made by Amazon to Representative Jayapal and the House Judiciary Committee during a hearing on July 16, 2019.
During that hearing, Jayapal specifically questioned Amazon’s use of third-party seller data. Nate Sutton, Amazon’s Associate General Counsel, responded unequivocally, stating, “we do not use any seller data to compete with them.” This statement is now under intense scrutiny in light of the Wall Street Journal‘s findings.
Wall Street Journal Report Ignites Antitrust Concerns
The Wall Street Journal investigation, based on interviews with over 20 current and former Amazon employees and internal company documents, paints a different picture. It suggests that using seller data to inform Amazon’s product development was not an isolated incident but rather a common practice. According to the report, this was “standard operating procedure” for Amazon employees working on private-label products across various categories, from electronics to sporting goods.
Furthermore, the report indicated that while Amazon had formal policies against using non-public seller data, these rules were not consistently enforced. Employees described instances where managers would circumvent restrictions to obtain competitor data, highlighting aggressive targets set for Amazon’s private label business which may have indirectly encouraged such practices.
These allegations gain further weight from parallel investigations, including a preliminary antitrust inquiry by the European Commission into similar conduct by Amazon. The European Commission has stated that “Amazon appears to use competitively sensitive information—about marketplace sellers, their products and transactions on the marketplace.”
Contradiction with Prior Testimony and Ongoing Investigation
The lawmakers’ letter emphasizes the severity of these allegations, stating, “If the reporting in the Wall Street Journal article is accurate, then statements Amazon made to the Committee about the company’s business practices appear to be misleading, and possibly criminally false or perjurious.”
This request for Bezos’s testimony is also set against the backdrop of an ongoing investigation by the House Judiciary Committee into Amazon’s role in the digital marketplace. Since September, the committee has been seeking documents and communications related to Amazon’s dealings with third-party sellers, including the crucial issue of data utilization. The letter notes that Amazon’s response to these document requests has been inadequate, with “significant gaps remain[ing]” even after seven months.
Committee Expects Bezos’s Testimony
In conclusion, the letter to Jeff Bezos underscores the gravity of the situation. The committee explicitly states its expectation for Bezos to testify, referencing the Wall Street Journal report, prior testimony, and the ongoing investigation. While they anticipate voluntary cooperation, the committee reserves the right to compel Bezos’s appearance if necessary.
This development signals a critical juncture in the scrutiny of big tech and antitrust enforcement, as lawmakers seek to understand and address potential anti-competitive practices within the digital marketplace, with Amazon and Jeff Bezos now directly in the spotlight following the Wall Street Journal‘s investigative report.
