Washington DC Attorney General opens antitrust investigation into Amazon's business practices

Amazon has joined the illustrious list of technology companies charged with antitrust violations, with DC Attorney General Karl Racine accusing the company of abusing its power over 3rd party sellers.

“Amazon’s policies have prevented competing platforms, including sellers’ own websites, from competing on price and gaining market share,” said Racine. “The loss of competition results in less innovation. Amazon has used its dominant position in the online retail market to win at all costs. It maximizes its profits at the expense of third-party sellers and consumers, while harming competition.”

At the heart of the complaint is the accusation that Amazon prevents third-party sellers from offering products at lower prices on competing platforms. Since Amazon charges a massive 30-40% service free this prevents sellers from offering a better deal to customers on platforms that charge lower service fees.

Racine is looking for structural remedies, including ending its price agreements and recovering damages to curb additional anti-competitive conduct.

The full complaint can be read here.

via Neowin