Lawmakers who spent much of 2019 and 2020 probing Amazon for potential antitrust violations now accuse the tech giant of lying to Congress and want the Department of Justice to investigate “potentially criminal conduct” from the company and some of its executives.
Members of the Judiciary Committee stated in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland on March 9, “Amazon lied through a senior executive’s sworn testimony” about how the company used the data it collects from third-party sellers. The lawmakers further state that the company is involved in a pattern and practice of misleading conduct, including dominating its part of the industry through monopoly.
Amazon further “attempted to cover up its lie by offering ever-shifting explanations” about how it used seller data, according to the letter, which was signed by Reps. Jerry Nadler and Ken Buck, the committee’s top Democrat and Republican, as well as leading members of the panel’s antitrust subcommittee. After being “caught in a lie,” the lawmakers wrote, Amazon tried to draw “misleading” distinctions about how its policy prohibited the use of individual sellers’ data while still allowing Amazon to use seller data in the aggregate.
The lawmakers’ letter gives the company one last chance to provide evidence to corroborate the company’s prior testimony and statements. It also notes that it is illegal to willfully make statements that are false to a congressional investigation. The CEO has until November 1st to provide a sworn response on how Amazon uses data to develop and market its products.
The letter’s pointed wording is reminiscent of the rhetoric used between Washington and Big Tech. Companies including Amazon, Facebook Inc, Apple Inc and Alphabet Inc’s Google have been under growing scrutiny in Washington, Europe and other parts of the world, fueled by concerns among regulators, lawmakers and consumer groups that the firms have too much power and are engaging in unfair practices that hurt other businesses.
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