In victory for the EU, Amazon will settle high-level antitrust investigations
In victory for the EU, Amazon will settle high-level antitrust investigations
Enlarge / European Commission Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager gives press conference press on Amazon's antitrust case in November.
Olivier Hostlet/Getty Images
Amazon has reached a final settlement with EU antitrust regulators over its use of data-mined rivals, in a decision that will end two of the most high-profile investigations in Brussels .
The American e-commerce group has pledged to increase the visibility of competing products by giving them equal treatment on Amazon's "buy box", which generates the majority of purchases on the site. This will also create a featured alternative offer for buyers for whom speed of delivery is less important.
The European Commission plans to announce the deal on December 20, according to four people with direct knowledge of the timeline. However, they warned that the date could still change at the last minute.
The commitments, which are to remain in force for five years, have been "market tested" with rivals and agreed with EU officials, these people said. "There is very little to discuss," said a person with knowledge of the process.
The move represents a victory for the EU, as it will serve as a blueprint for the technology group's compliance with the new Digital Markets Act, legislation aimed at limiting the power of Big Tech.
It also means that Amazon will avoid formal charges of breaching EU law and a hefty fine of up to 10% of global revenue.
The DMA is the first major overhaul of the rules governing technology groups in more than two decades. It establishes new obligations for large online platforms to give equal treatment to data, prohibiting what is known as self-preference whereby a company ranks its products ahead of its competitors in its own market.
Amazon's deal with Brussels comes three years after EU regulators opened an investigation into the group's alleged anti-competitive practices in the way it handles competitor data.
As part of the settlement, Amazon will allow sellers using its Prime membership program to choose any logistics company and negotiate terms directly, instead of being required to use Amazon's logistics services. Amazon.
The agreement provides a first glimpse of how global tech companies will follow new EU digital legislation.
Chris Meyers, Amazon's associate general counsel, told a conference Monday that the commitments were in line with how the group planned to comply with new rules from Brussels.
“The specific engagement that we have proposed, which we believe also meets the obligations of the DMA, is really the approach that we will take under the DMA,” he said.< /p>
Amazon declined to comment on Tuesday, but pointed to a previous statement from the company, which read, "While we have serious concerns about DMA unfairly targeting Amazon...we have engaged constructively with the commission ."
Enlarge / European Commission Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager gives press conference press on Amazon's antitrust case in November.
Olivier Hostlet/Getty Images
Amazon has reached a final settlement with EU antitrust regulators over its use of data-mined rivals, in a decision that will end two of the most high-profile investigations in Brussels .
The American e-commerce group has pledged to increase the visibility of competing products by giving them equal treatment on Amazon's "buy box", which generates the majority of purchases on the site. This will also create a featured alternative offer for buyers for whom speed of delivery is less important.
The European Commission plans to announce the deal on December 20, according to four people with direct knowledge of the timeline. However, they warned that the date could still change at the last minute.
The commitments, which are to remain in force for five years, have been "market tested" with rivals and agreed with EU officials, these people said. "There is very little to discuss," said a person with knowledge of the process.
The move represents a victory for the EU, as it will serve as a blueprint for the technology group's compliance with the new Digital Markets Act, legislation aimed at limiting the power of Big Tech.
It also means that Amazon will avoid formal charges of breaching EU law and a hefty fine of up to 10% of global revenue.
The DMA is the first major overhaul of the rules governing technology groups in more than two decades. It establishes new obligations for large online platforms to give equal treatment to data, prohibiting what is known as self-preference whereby a company ranks its products ahead of its competitors in its own market.
Amazon's deal with Brussels comes three years after EU regulators opened an investigation into the group's alleged anti-competitive practices in the way it handles competitor data.
As part of the settlement, Amazon will allow sellers using its Prime membership program to choose any logistics company and negotiate terms directly, instead of being required to use Amazon's logistics services. Amazon.
The agreement provides a first glimpse of how global tech companies will follow new EU digital legislation.
Chris Meyers, Amazon's associate general counsel, told a conference Monday that the commitments were in line with how the group planned to comply with new rules from Brussels.
“The specific engagement that we have proposed, which we believe also meets the obligations of the DMA, is really the approach that we will take under the DMA,” he said.< /p>
Amazon declined to comment on Tuesday, but pointed to a previous statement from the company, which read, "While we have serious concerns about DMA unfairly targeting Amazon...we have engaged constructively with the commission ."
Enlarge / European Commission Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager gives press conference press on Amazon's antitrust case in November.
Olivier Hostlet/Getty Images
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