trending Market Intelligence /marketintelligence/en/news-insights/trending/u9EvG9rDO59XZqBMDcwoSA2 content esgSubNav
In This List

The US Week Ahead: Top antitrust officials to testify as big tech faces pressure

Blog

Volume of Investment Research Reports on Inflation Increased in Q4 2021

Blog

Price wars in India: Disney+ Hotstar vs. Amazon Prime Video vs. Netflix

Blog

Using ESG Analysis to Support a Sustainable Future

Podcast

Next in Tech | Episode 48: The everything that is Industrial IoT


The US Week Ahead: Top antitrust officials to testify as big tech faces pressure

The top federal antitrust officials are slated to testify before Congress this week amid mounting regulatory scrutiny of big companies in the technology industry.

On Sept. 17, Joseph Simons, chairman of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, and Makan Delrahim, head of the U.S. Department of Justice's antitrust division, will both testify at a U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary subcommittee hearing. The hearing is titled, "Oversight of the Enforcement of the Antitrust Laws."

The hearing was originally scheduled for July 23, but was postponed. Later that week, on July 26, DOJ conditionally approved T-Mobile US Inc.'s pending merger with Sprint Corp.

Both agencies have been active in their scrutiny of large tech platforms in recent months.

The FTC announced in February that it had formed a task force to monitor competition in U.S. technology markets.

In July, Facebook Inc. disclosed that it was being investigated by the FTC for antitrust concerns, shortly after it agreed to pay a $5 billion fine to settle FTC-documented privacy violations.

Additionally, the FTC has started interviewing sellers on Amazon.com Inc.'s platform as part of an investigation into the e-commerce giant's power over competition, Bloomberg News reported Sept. 11. Simons has reportedly said he is prepared to break up large technology platforms if necessary.

In July, the DOJ announced an antitrust review into "whether and how market-leading online platforms have achieved market power and are engaging in practices that have reduced competition, stifled innovation, or otherwise harmed consumers."

Earlier this summer, multiple media reports alleged that the two agencies collaborated to split antitrust jurisdiction of specific companies, with the FTC being tasked to take the lead on antitrust investigations into Facebook and Amazon and the DOJ taking the lead on antitrust probes into Apple Inc. and Alphabet Inc.'s Google LLC.

While an antitrust investigation into Google announced Sept. 9 by 50 attorneys general is independent of federal probes, Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes said it is "possible" that the coalition of attorneys general could share information with the DOJ and that the group has discussed antitrust issues related to tech companies with Delrahim.

Scrutiny toward large tech platforms from lawmakers has been a rare bipartisan issue in recent years.

Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, who launched an antitrust investigation into Google when he was attorney general of Missouri, said he was "heartened" by the news of the state-led probe. Hawley has also reportedly said that Congress should have a discussion "about what antitrust looks like when applied to the tech world."

In 2018, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said big tech "maybe is no longer entitled to be as big as it is."

In addition to Senate oversight of antitrust enforcement, the House Judiciary Committee is also actively engaged in a bipartisan probe of competition in digital markets.

Officials from Facebook, Twitter Inc. and Google will also be testifying before the Senate this week. On Sept. 18, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation will hold a hearing titled, "Mass Violence, Extremism, and Digital Responsibility."

According to a committee announcement, the hearing will "examine the proliferation of extremism online and explore the effectiveness of industry efforts to remove violent content from online platforms." Monika Bickert, head of global policy management at Facebook; Nick Pickles, public policy director at Twitter; and Derek Slater, global director of information policy at Google, are all expected to testify.

Government

Sept. 17 A Senate Committee on the Judiciary subcommittee will host a hearing titled "Oversight of the Enforcement of the Antitrust Laws."
Sept. 18 The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation will host a hearing titled "Mass Violence, Extremism, and Digital Responsibility."
Sept. 18

The House Committee on Science, Space and Technology will host a hearing titled "The Next Mile: Technology Pathways to Accelerate Sustainability Within the Transportation Sector."

Industry, legal and think tank events
Sept. 16

The Professional Services Council will host an event titled "2019 Tech Trends Conference" in Washington, D.C.

Sept. 16-18

The Competitive Carriers Association, an advocacy group for rural, regional and nationwide wireless telecommunications providers, will host its annual convention in Providence, R.I.

Sept. 17

America's Communications Association will host a regional meeting with the National Cable Television Cooperative in Providence, R.I.

Sept. 17-18

The National Association for Multi-ethnicity in Communications will host an event titled "2019 NAMIC Conference" in New York.

Sept. 19 The Washington International Trade Association will host an event titled "YTP x YCW DC: Rare Earths, 5G, and How the US Should Respond to Chinese Tech’s Rising Global Influence" in Washington, D.C.

Stories of note:

50 state attorneys general launch probe into Google's business practices

House panel asks tech companies to share information in antitrust probe