Amazon attempts to end a three-year investigation by European Union antitrust authorities on Thursday, making a series of changes to its business practices and making it easier for rival merchants to reach customers on their website. Proposed to provide a good method.
Amazon is investigating allegations of improperly using its e-commerce advantage to eliminate competitors. Authorities have accused the company of collecting private data about independent merchants, announcing their product offerings, and using Amazon Prime to force sellers to use the logistics business.
On Thursday, the European Commission, the block’s executive branch in 27 countries, vowed that Amazon will stop collecting private data about competing merchants, including information on terms of sale, revenue, shipping, inventory and performance. Said that.
Amazon has promised to give other sellers more access to valuable spaces on its website, such as “purchase boxes” that prominently display special offers. Merchants can also participate in the Prime program without using Amazon’s logistics business, and retailers can work with other providers to handle inventory and shipments.
The concession from Amazon lasts for five years and applies only to businesses in the European Union. A settlement is under consideration and a final decision by the Commission is scheduled for the end of the year. Rivals and other groups must submit their views on Amazon’s offer to the Commission by September 9.
The settlement helps Amazon avoid penalties that could total billions of dollars.
The offer of reconciliation stems from two active investigations. In 2019, the Commission began investigating data collection on Amazon merchants. The following year, another study on Amazon Prime and Buybox began.
The European Union is increasing its scrutiny of the world’s largest technology companies. Amazon, Apple, Google, and Meta have all been the subject of antitrust investigations in recent years.
Oversights are expected to intensify. In March, policy makers reached an agreement on a new law, the Digital Markets Act, that would prevent the largest technology platforms from using services and wealth to lock in users and undermine competitors. Another law, the Digital Services Act, is putting pressure on social media companies to clean up their platforms.
Regulators are particularly concerned that the largest tech companies are leveraging their size and size to negatively impact competition.
Amazon operates a marketplace that is essential for independent sellers to reach their customers, but it also competes with many of those merchants. Also under investigation by the European Commission, Apple controls how app makers reach iPhone and iPad users and sells software that competes with those services.
Faced with separate antitrust investigations in Germany and the United Kingdom, Amazon has raised concerns that European regulators are unfairly targeting American tech companies.
“We are seriously concerned about the Digital Markets Act, which unfairly targets Amazon and several other U.S. companies, and disagree with some of the European Commission’s conclusions, but the Commission has their We were constructively involved in addressing concerns, “the company said in a statement.
