EU's Antitrust Commissioner Opens Preliminary Probe into Amazon (cnbc.com)

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EU's Antitrust Commissioner Opens Preliminary Probe into Amazon (cnbc.com)

Posted by ryuzaki0 on Wednesday September 19, 2018 @05:34AM from the no-mercy dept.

European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager has begun questioning merchants on Amazon's use of their data, Vestager said Wednesday. The issue, she said, is whether Amazon is using data from the merchants it hosts on its site to secure an advantage in selling products against those same retailers. From a report: "These are very early days and we haven't formally opened a case. We are trying to make sure that we get the full picture," Vestager said during a news conference Wednesday. The probe comes as the world's largest online retailer faces growing calls for regulation. Investors and insiders have long cited Amazon's size and reach as reason to break the company up. President Donald Trump has hinted at antitrust action against Amazon as part of continued attacks against CEO Jeff Bezos, who also owns The Washington Post. U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions was set to meet this month with state officials to discuss antitrust concerns in Silicon Valley, though much of the regulation on Big Tech thus far has come out of Brussels.

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Bloated whore e-store by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 05:39 · Score: 0

Carve it up!
1. Re:Bloated whore e-store by xxxJonBoyxxx · 2018-09-19 05:47 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  >> Investors and insiders have long cited Amazon's size and reach as reason to break the company up.
  
  OK, I know journalists don't usually graduate at the top of the class, but it seems unlikely that people who own ("investors") or work for the company ("insiders") want Amazon broken up. I'd suspect the people who really want this to happen would be "competitors", "labor advocates" and most especially "attorneys".
2. Re:Bloated whore e-store by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 06:00 · Score: 0
  
  " I know journalists don't usually graduate at the top of the class " - based on that assumptive reasoning, you didn't either.
3. Re:Bloated whore e-store by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 06:02 · Score: 0, Funny
  
  ^ butthurt journalist
4. Re:Bloated whore e-store by lgw · 2018-09-19 06:06 · Score: 1
  
  Further, that very suggestive "size and reach" could have been quantified "5-10% of retail, smaller than Walmart". If Amazon is using sellers' data against them that's a dick move for sure, but what does that have to do with anti-trust? Since when is "less that 10% of the market" any kind of monopoly.
  
  --
  Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
5. Re:Bloated whore e-store by fahrbot-bot · 2018-09-19 06:08 · Score: 1
  
  >> Investors and insiders have long cited Amazon's size and reach as reason to break the company up. OK, I know journalists don't usually graduate at the top of the class, but it seems unlikely that people who own ("investors") or work for the company ("insiders") want Amazon broken up. I'd suspect the people who really want this to happen would be "competitors", "labor advocates" and most especially "attorneys".
  And Trump - 'cause he hates Jeff Bezos (and pretty much anyone else named Jeff at the moment).
  [ Though I imagine Bezos would probably still be the majority shareholder in *all* the broken company pieces and that could potentially make him even more wealthy ... So be careful what you wish for Donald. ]
  
  --
  It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
6. Re:Bloated whore e-store by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 06:19 · Score: 0
  
  Thank you for demonstrating the bottom of the class for comparison.
7. Re:Bloated whore e-store by cayenne8 · 2018-09-19 07:39 · Score: 1
  
  ...but it seems unlikely that people who own ("investors")...
  As an investor that has seen his stock value RISE by quite a large margin, I for one can say I don't see an upside from breaking them up any time soon....
  Retail and AWS are nice to have among the variety of growth channels, and them adding on with other businesses they are generating (advertising right now is exciting to me as that they are now #3 in world for advertising as I understand it)....I'm happy to let my stock value grow.
  I just wish I had bought more and earlier than I did.....
  
  --
  Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
8. Re:Bloated whore e-store by Applehu+Akbar · 2018-09-19 08:50 · Score: 1
  
  Carve it up!
  Because I really liked having to accumulate long lists of things we needed buy on our bimonthly trips to Big City. And on those trips, the scavenger hunt from store to store to accumulate the items occupied a day that we now have to spend doing something else. And those dadratted low prices from online competition! So exploitative!
  See - I'm thinking about this issue the European way. Reject improving technology, protect entrenched oligopolies, insist on "doing X locally" for all values of X.
Easy by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 05:43 · Score: 0

If Dump wants it, donâ(TM)t do it. If he doesnâ(TM)t, than we should do it. Rarely are things this easy.
OK, who's the bad guy here? by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 05:56 · Score: 0

After all, if Trump is against Amazon, that would make them the good guy, in liberal minds, right?
But wait - Amazon is the bad guy for being too big and successful, so Trump must be the good guy.
It's SO confusing keeping up with SJWs!
1. Re: OK, who's the bad guy here? by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 06:03 · Score: 0
  
  Even a moron like trump can be right occassionally
2. Re:OK, who's the bad guy here? by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 07:07 · Score: 0
  
  There can be more than one bad guy
Is the EU AntiTrust ever wrong? by GregMmm · 2018-09-19 05:59 · Score: 2, Interesting

All I hear about is how the EU goes after companies, fines them, and then the appeal, and of course the appeal goes down in flames. So in the end, the EU gets to take a bunch of money, company XYZ is frustrated, and life goes on.
Sooo, is there ever times when the EU antitrust commission investigates and finds out, hey these guys are ok! Does this happen or is this just the money printing machine it appears to be?
1. Re:Is the EU AntiTrust ever wrong? by lgw · 2018-09-19 06:08 · Score: 1, Troll
  
  All the evidence points to this as a creative tax scheme to help delay the time when the EU runs out of other people's money.
  
  --
  Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
2. Re:Is the EU AntiTrust ever wrong? by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 06:26 · Score: 0
  
  lolbertarian fag
3. Re:Is the EU AntiTrust ever wrong? by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 08:31 · Score: 0
  
  well, it's all part of Trump's trade war. The orange is attacking his allies not just chineese. Left leaning USA companies got some time but Trump doesn't wanna stop.
  It's all sad.
4. Re:Is the EU AntiTrust ever wrong? by mjwx · 2018-09-20 01:30 · Score: 1
  
  All I hear about is how the EU goes after companies, fines them, and then the appeal, and of course the appeal goes down in flames. So in the end, the EU gets to take a bunch of money, company XYZ is frustrated, and life goes on.
  Sooo, is there ever times when the EU antitrust commission investigates and finds out, hey these guys are ok! Does this happen or is this just the money printing machine it appears to be?
  Then you need better news sources.
  
  The EU brokers international disputes amongst the EU, enforces humanitarian laws, reduces trade barriers between member states and negotiates international trade deals that are backed up with the power of the worlds largest trade bloc. The EU are pretty much the only ones who can and do stand up to the bullying tactics of China and the US.
  
  The only reason you "only" hear about the EU anti-trust commission is because you actively ignore the rest of the information... Also the EU stands up for a free and fair market, hence why they have such an active anti-trust commission, also the EU clears things all the time, like recently clearing McD's of tax evasion in Europe (the deal Luxembourg offered them was legal under EU law).
  
  --
  Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
5. Re:Is the EU AntiTrust ever wrong? by AmiMoJo · 2018-09-20 03:20 · Score: 1
  
  These things often result in changes in behaviour for the companies. Every search engine respects the European right to be forgotten, for example. Microsoft gave us the de-crappified Windows N versions. Apple paid it's taxes, although that is still under final appeal.
  
  --
  const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
  SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
Ya but, by fahrbot-bot · 2018-09-19 06:00 · Score: 1

They selected "No Rush" shipping on the probe so they could get the $5 Prime Pantry coupon ...

--
It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
Has IGW ever been an HONEST cunt though? by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 06:27 · Score: 0

Amazon is an abusive monopoly, and while faggots like IGW can deny this fact and pretend the EU is an insolvent socialist endeavor instead, the fact is the souls of dishonest cunts like IGW are bought and sold for nickels in Hell.
The system works.
1. Re:Has IGW ever been an HONEST cunt though? by lgw · 2018-09-19 07:00 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  Amazon is an abusive monopoly
  Amazon has less than 10% of retail. It's smaller than Walmart.
  
  --
  Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
2. Re:Has IGW ever been an HONEST cunt though? by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 07:16 · Score: 0
  
  Thanks for the dishonest cunt perspective, this isn't a retail % discussion. That changes nothing.
3. Re:Has IGW ever been an HONEST cunt though? by lgw · 2018-09-19 08:03 · Score: 1
  
  this isn't a retail % discussion. That changes nothing.
  What do you imagine Amazon has a monopoly on, then? They're a big player in "online flea market dominated by Chinese sellers", but Alibaba is a bigger Chinese flea market.
  
  --
  Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
4. Re:Has IGW ever been an HONEST cunt though? by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 08:36 · Score: 0
  
  Amazon has less than 10% of retail. It's smaller than Walmart.
  I don't think monopoly means what you think it means.
5. Re:Has IGW ever been an HONEST cunt though? by slack_justyb · 2018-09-19 08:38 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Amazon has less than 10% of retail. It's smaller than Walmart.
  That's not a false number there everyone. However, that said, Amazon is 49.1% of all e-commerce sales. I'll point here for infographic of online versus offline sales. Now those numbers are a bit dated as they were 2016 to 2017, but it shows that online is $400B and offline is around $3.4T or $3,375B for those wanting to keep a consistent scale. More interestingly online sales show higher growth than offline sales +14% versus +5%. If everything were to stay exactly the same in terms of percentage of sales and rates of growth, Amazon does seem be a big concern should online sales begin to outstrip offline sales. Now do note, that's a big IF there, so use whatever amount of gains of salt you so wish on that.
  I don't think IGW is wrong here. This is one of those things that this might be a problem one day and Governments should be proactive, not reactive. It's a question of, should a government act proactively when such actions may or may not be warranted? Or should the government sit on the sidelines and wait until there is a problem, which in turn may not ever come to pass? With how fast online sales are growing, I don't think it unwise for the EU to start having this on their radar. How far they should go though, I couldn't honestly say.
6. Re:Has IGW ever been an HONEST cunt though? by thegarbz · 2018-09-19 09:41 · Score: 0
  
  Amazon has less than 10% of retail. It's smaller than Walmart.
  Which is a bit like saying Microsoft isn't a monopoly because their OS only runs on a small fraction of devices powered by electricity.
  Monopolies exist in specific markets and can be prosecuted under specific markets.
7. Re:Has IGW ever been an HONEST cunt though? by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 10:27 · Score: 0
  
  Source? Who are they abusing? How are they abusing them.
  I think amazon is a pretty shitty company, but I've yet to see any breach of US antitrust law. EU anti-American law is so deliberately bureaucratic that all commerce is illegal.
8. Re:Has IGW ever been an HONEST cunt though? by lgw · 2018-09-20 01:47 · Score: 1
  
  What specific market? I mean, they don't even have a monopoly on "selling on Amazon.com". Ebooks, maybe? Not sure who the other players are there.
  
  --
  Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
9. Re:Has IGW ever been an HONEST cunt though? by thegarbz · 2018-09-20 20:27 · Score: 1
  
  You don't need to be the only player to fall afoul of antitrust laws. When you gain critical mass you arbitrarily have the obligation to not use your dominance anti-competitively. Yes Amazon.com ebooks fall into this category. In America, Amazon.com for online sales in general would likewise. In the entire retail market, they do not. The question ultimately is: In the market in which they are operating do they have power created through dominance.
Re:anal probe by aliens? by Hylandr · 2018-09-19 06:36 · Score: 2

Any extra-terrestrial intelligence worth it's salt would undoubtedly have a 'prime directive' that prohibits contact with less advanced races.
Understanding criminals don't obey laws, is it any leap of logic to understand why these criminal-aliens prefer anal sex?

--
~ People that think they are better than anyone else for any reason are the cause of all the strife in the world.
I guess ... by nospam007 · 2018-09-19 06:39 · Score: 1

...they'll find out that merchants have checked the competitor's prices to underbid them for 6000 years, it's a bit late even for the EU.
1. Re:I guess ... by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 16:26 · Score: 0
  
  I guess you missed the point.
  Amazon is both an online retailer and a platform provider for other online retailers. If they use the information they gain as a platform provider to compete as a retailer then they may be abusing using their market dominance in one area to gain market dominance in another area. That is what antitrust legislation is about.
if client.geolocation == 'Brussels'... by devslash0 · 2018-09-19 06:44 · Score: 1

They let the cat out of the bag too early. What Amazon will do is:

if client.geolocation == 'Brussels': . . . . play_a_good_boy() else: . . . . the_usual_stuff()
1. Re:if client.geolocation == 'Brussels'... by mujadaddy · 2018-09-19 08:20 · Score: 1
  
  Just like Volkswagen!
  
  --
  Populus vult decipi, ergo decipiatur...
  "Force shits upon Reason's back." - Poor Richard's Almanac
Re:Good day, Slashdot by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 07:06 · Score: 0

Your god isn't real yo
Warning bells going off by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 07:39 · Score: 0

Figure its about time for warning bells to go off about Amazon. They have cannibalized a lot of market sectors and are still looking at others such as prescription drugs. I shop a lot at Amazon to save money, and am not surprised they are now getting a closer look from trade agencies. When you start to affect biggies like Walmart then your getting too big for governments not to notice.
Re: Good day, Slashdot by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 07:48 · Score: 0

But mine is. God, activate the doomsday cannon.
Is water wet by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 07:58 · Score: 0

"whether Amazon is using data from the merchants it hosts on its site to secure an advantage in selling products against those same retailers"
Let me see if I can help them with this determination. THEY ARE.
44% e commerce with get you noticed by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 08:53 · Score: 0

Last year Amazon had 44% of all e commerce which is a big deal because that is expected to continue to grow. Overall Amazon only has around 4% total retail sales but then again its probably only going to increase.
Decentralization is the answer; not government by Anonymous Coward · 2018-09-19 18:50 · Score: 0

People are stupid. They have a successful business and see this huge opportunity to profit from getting on Amazon. Then they bitch and moan when Amazon takes there business. WTF did you think was going to happen when you made deals with a competitor?
I'm sorry- but I'm not a fan of Amazon- but this isn't a problem for government to "solve". The solution is to stop making shitty deals with Amazon that sell out your long term profitability for short term gain. My company does well and we don't sell on Amazon. I look forward to solutions such as Open Bizarre which have the potential to decentralize the market place if there is any hope to be had that people actually adopt it.