The office of U.S. Rep. David Cicilline (D-CA) released a statement this Thursday (April 15) confirming that the U.S. House Judiciary Committee has formally approved a 400-page antitrust report that alleges large technology companies are acquiring or squeezing smaller companies, according to foreign media reports.
The House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee released the report in October 2020 after a months-long investigation into market power in the technology industry. The report calls the power of large tech companies “monopolies” and recommends sweeping reforms.
The report was approved Thursday, local time, in a lengthy marathon hearing with 24 votes in favor and 17 against, becoming the official report of the House Judiciary Committee and a blueprint for legislation to curb the market power of tech giants like Google, Apple, Amazon and Facebook.
The report is the first such review of the technology industry by the U.S. Congress. The report recommends extensive changes to antitrust laws and describes dozens of cases in which the companies allegedly abused their power. However, all of those companies denied any wrongdoing.
In a statement, Cicilline said, “Amazon, Apple, Google and Facebook all have monopoly power over important areas of our economy. This monopoly must come to an end. I look forward to legislation that will address these concerns.”
The commission is currently considering regulations and reforms that could limit the power of large tech companies, with the first proposal already submitted. In March, a panel led by Cicilline and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Mass.) introduced proposals aimed at making it easier for news organizations to negotiate collectively with platforms like Google and Facebook.
Also in the Senate, Klobuchar introduced a broader proposal in February to strengthen the ability of antitrust enforcers to block mergers by lowering the threshold for blocking deals and providing them with more funding for lawsuits.
Republicans have consistently criticized big tech companies for allegedly censoring conservative speech, citing Facebook and Twitter for freezing or banning former President Donald Trump’s access to those platforms.
Despite their outrage, most Republicans did not support the report’s proposal to change antitrust laws, instead discussing stripping social media companies of the legal protections they receive under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. This law gives companies immunity from liability for content posted by users on their sites.
The legislative proposals in the report range from radical ones, such as potentially banning companies like Amazon from operating marketplaces where they also compete, to less controversial ones, such as increasing the budgets of the antitrust law enforcement agencies (the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)).
The report also urges Congress to allow antitrust enforcers greater power to stop companies from acquiring potential competitors, something that is difficult to do now.
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