Apple, Google, Amazon, and Facebook CEOs will testify before Congress
The CEOs of Amazon, Facebook, Apple, and Google will testify before Congress later this month to answer questions related to its broad antitrust investigation of Big Tech. The plans were first reported by Kara Swisher, before a spokesperson for the House Judiciary Committee confirmed the plans to The New York Times. Apple’s Tim Cook, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Alphabet/Google’s Sundar Pichai, and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos have all agreed to testify.
News of the July hearing marks a significant step in the House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee’s inquiry, which is investigating different alleged abuses by each of the four companies. For Google, the discussion has centered on its control of the ad market, but for Facebook the focus has been its acquisitions. Apple’s App Store policies have born the brunt of its antitrust scrutiny, while Amazon’s treatment of third-party sellers is being examined.
While tech leaders have appeared before Congress before, the gathering of the four horsemen of the Techopolypse should be an epic show. But that is only if the lawmakers do their job and ask pointed questions about the true impact of their power on competition.
— Kara Swisher (@karaswisher) July 1, 2020
The House Judiciary Committee’s antitrust investigation was first announced in June 2019. It made formal document requests of the big tech companies last September. The committee has already hosted a number of panels with smaller companies like Sonos, Tile, and Basecamp, during which these companies alleged to have been harmed by the monopolistic practices of the big tech companies. The NYT notes that the committee is thought to be nearing the end of its investigation.
Tim Cook, Mark Zuckerberg, and Sundar Pichai have each already testified in front of Congress, but it will be a first time for Amazon’s Jeff Bezos. The exact date and format for the hearings — held in person or virtually — is still undecided.
Beyond its antitrust investigation, the committee is also likely to ask about other major issues at the companies, like hate speech on Facebook and Google’s YouTube division, as well as Amazon’s treatment of warehouse workers, The New York Times notes.
The Judiciary Commitee’s antitrust investigation is not the only regulatory battle Big Tech is currently facing in the United States. The Federal Trade Commission has announced an investigation into the acquisitions made by the big tech companies, and the Justice Department and 50 attorneys general from US states and territories are also conducting antitrust probes of their own. Internationally, EU regulators are conducting their own investigations.
The CEOs of Amazon, Facebook, Apple, and Google will testify before Congress later this month to answer questions related to its broad antitrust investigation of Big Tech. The plans were first reported by Kara Swisher, before a spokesperson for the House Judiciary Committee confirmed the plans to The New York…
Recent Posts
- The newest Star Wars Acolyte trailer seems to reveal the show’s big bad
- 6-screen laptop manufacturer is very much alive — Acme Portable’s Megapac L3 is the original hexadisplay mobile powerstation and is still on sale, shame that it is still using old dual CPU tech from AMD and Intel
- ChromeOS gets better multitasking and Wi-Fi traffic prioritization
- Huge Google Pixel 8a leak includes all the predicted specs – and a price
- Huge Google Pixel 8a leak includes all the predicted specs – and a price
Archives
- May 2024
- April 2024
- March 2024
- February 2024
- January 2024
- December 2023
- November 2023
- October 2023
- September 2023
- August 2023
- July 2023
- June 2023
- May 2023
- April 2023
- March 2023
- February 2023
- January 2023
- December 2022
- November 2022
- October 2022
- September 2022
- August 2022
- July 2022
- June 2022
- May 2022
- April 2022
- March 2022
- February 2022
- January 2022
- December 2021
- November 2021
- October 2021
- September 2021
- August 2021
- July 2021
- June 2021
- May 2021
- April 2021
- March 2021
- February 2021
- January 2021
- December 2020
- November 2020
- October 2020
- September 2020
- August 2020
- July 2020
- June 2020
- May 2020
- April 2020
- March 2020
- February 2020
- January 2020
- December 2019
- November 2019
- December 2011