An antitrust lawsuit filed against Amazon by the Washington, D.C., attorney general Karl Racine this week promises to test the evidence and allegations that have been marshaled against the tech giant by U.S. legislators and regulators.
The suit leans heavily on findings from the U.S. House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee last year, alleging that Amazon illegally manipulates the e-commerce market to its advantage by penalizing third-party sellers that offer products at lower prices on other platforms.
But wait a second, isn't it a good thing for consumers — supporting the very purpose of antitrust law — for Amazon to promote the lowest-price products?
That is the essence of Amazon's response, and it's one reason the case is so interesting, promising to put the spotlight not just on Amazon's business tactics but on the potential need to upgrade antitrust laws and regulations for a new era of commerce.
At first glance, the suit faces an uphill battle in at least a couple areas. However, the allegations in the suit ring true to the experience of Jason Boyce of Avenue7Media, a former Amazon third-party seller and GeekWire's collaborator on the Day 2 podcast.
We talk about his experiences as a third-party seller, debate the relative merits of the antitrust suit, and consider the implications for incoming Amazon CEO Andy Jassy on this episode of Day 2, GeekWire's podcast about everything Amazon.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce
Football’s funniest family duo — Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — team up to provide next-level access to life in the league as it unfolds. The two brothers and Super Bowl champions drop weekly insights about the weekly slate of games and share their INSIDE perspectives on trending NFL news and sports headlines. They also endlessly rag on each other as brothers do, chat the latest in pop culture and welcome some very popular and well-known friends to chat with them. Check out new episodes every Wednesday. Follow New Heights on the Wondery App, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes early and ad-free, and get exclusive content on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And join our new membership for a unique fan experience by going to the New Heights YouTube channel now!
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com