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Amazon faces EU antitrust probe; risks $23bn fine

Amazon faces EU antitrust probe; risks $23bn fine

Mubasher: The European Union’s (EU) executive arm opened a formal antitrust investigation whether the online retailer was using sales data to win a competitive edge over smaller sellers on the marketplace platform.

The European Commission is taking “very close look at Amazon's business practices and its dual role as marketplace and retailer, to assess its compliance with EU competition rules,” antitrust Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said.

The EU initiated a preliminary investigation into the matter last year, which concluded that “Amazon appears to use competitively sensitive information about marketplace sellers, their products and transactions on the marketplace.”

If Amazon proved to have violated the EU competition laws, it could face a fine of up to 10% of its annual revenue.

The US giant generated $223 billion from total sales last year, which means it could pay a fine of $23 billion.

Since becoming the EU competition commissioner in 2014, Vestager took several actions against big tech firms, including Apple, Facebook, Google and Amazon.

In July 2018, the EU fined Google $5 billion for anticompetitive practices related to its Android operating system.

In 2017, Amazon had to pay European nations EUR 250 million ($280.47 million) in unpaid back taxes.