EU Slams Amazon over Antitrust Issues, Faces Probe Over Sales

The EU has sent a formal statement of objection to Amazon which could lead to legal action.

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The European Union has slammed Amazon with an antitrust complaint about how it handles data from rival sellers on its platform. The EU has accused Amazon of abusing its control over the online market.

The EU has sent a formal statement of objection which could lead to legal action.

As per Barron’s report, EU’s antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager said Brussels has informed the company about the issue and that it would conduct an investigation while opening a second probe into the matter.

The investigation is supposed to look into whether Amazon gives its own retailers preferential treatment and whether it favours sellers that use Amazon’s logistics and delivery services.

“We must ensure that dual role platforms with market power, such as Amazon, do not distort competition” and that “data on the activity of third party sellers should not be used to the benefit of Amazon,” Vestager said in a statement. “Its rules should not artificially favor Amazon’s own retail offers or advantage the offers of retailers using Amazon’s logistics and delivery services.”

Amazon sells its own products and services on its platforms but also allows third-party sellers to use its platform to sell their wares.

Vestager also said that Amazon will have the opportunity to respond to this complaint “in the coming weeks”. Currently, there has been no time limit set on the formal enquiry nor on the second probe that has been launched against the retail giant.

“We disagree with the preliminary assertions of the European Commission and will continue to make every effort to ensure it has an accurate understanding of the facts,” Amazon responded in a statement.

Opposing EU’s stance, the retail giant also said that it represents less than one percent of the global retail market and there are large retail markets out there in which it operates.