The U.S. DOJ on Monday endorsed legislation forbidding large digital platforms such as Apple, Google, and Amazon from favoring their own products and services over competitors.
Ryan Tracy for The Wall Street Journal:
“The Department views the rise of dominant platforms as presenting a threat to open markets and competition, with risks for consumers, businesses, innovation, resiliency, global competitiveness, and our democracy,” says a letter to bipartisan leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee, signed by Peter Hyun, the Justice Department’s acting assistant attorney general for legislative affairs.
The letter, obtained by The Wall Street Journal, expresses support for the American Innovation and Choice Online Act, which the Senate’s judiciary panel approved in January in a bipartisan vote, as well as similar legislation moving through the House.
Amazon.com Inc., Alphabet Inc.’s Google, Apple Inc. and others oppose the proposed legislation, saying it would make it harder to offer popular services. The bills’ opponents also say it is fair for e-marketplaces, search engines and app stores to profit off their creations’ popularity…
[The legislaton] still hasn’t received a vote on the floor of either chamber, and it faces industry resistance as well as skepticism on both sides of the aisle. Some conservatives are wary of expanding the government’s power to police digital markets, while some Democrats, particularly from California, say the legislation unfairly targets a handful of large companies.
MacDailyNews Take: Beware unintended consequences.
Please help support MacDailyNews. Click or tap here to support our independent tech blog. Thank you!
Shop The Apple Store at Amazon.