FTC may file antitrust suit against Amazon next week: report

foxbusiness.com:

Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., joined ‘The Big Money Show’ to discuss FTC chair Lina Khan’s testimony during a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee’s hearing on antitrust laws and enforcement.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is reportedly planning to file an antitrust lawsuit against e-commerce giant Amazon next week that could start a lengthy legal battle aimed at breaking up the company, according to a report.

Politico reported that the FTC may file the suit against Amazon as early as Tuesday, according to three people with knowledge of the matter. Details of the suit aren’t known and the contours of the legal challenge are subject to change until it is officially filed, but it is expected to target a number of Amazon’s business practices for allegedly harming consumers and undermining competition. 

The Wall Street Journal previously reported that at an August meeting between Amazon and the FTC, the company declined to offer concessions to the FTC in the form of modifying its business practices to stave off a lawsuit and the agency didn’t indicate what sort of changes would be acceptable in terms of preventing a lawsuit. The Journal reported that a source indicated the FTC was planning to file its lawsuit against Amazon in late September.

AMAZON TO MEET WITH FTC OFFICIALS AHEAD OF EXPECTED ANTITRUST COMPLAINT

A potential lawsuit by the Federal Trade Commission against Amazon would likely set off a protracted legal battle that could take years to resolve. (Alejandro Martinez Velez/Europa Press via Getty Images / Getty Images)

The Journal added that some of Amazon’s business practices, such as its Fulfillment by Amazon logistics program and third-party sellers’ pricing on Amazon.com, would be scrutinized under the lawsuit,