Tech giant Amazon is currently undergoing a probe for potentially breaching the digital markets competition.
Members of the United States House Judiciary Committee have referred tech giant Amazon to the US Department of Justice (DOJ). According to the House committee, Amazon and some of its top executives have breached certain conducts in the market.
In a letter to the Attorney General of the United States, the committee said the company had engaged in the practice and pattern of misleading conduct.
This conduct suggested that Amazon and its executives were acting improperly to influence or block the committee’s investigation into competition in digital markets. The letter dated March 9 read;
“We have no choice but to refer this matter to the Department of Justice to investigate whether Amazon and its executives obstructed Congress in violation of applicable federal law.”
Amazon is yet to respond to this latest development.
The referral to the DOJ comes after House Committee warned Amazon back in October 2021. At the time, the panel accused the company and its top executives, including founder Jeff Bezos, of misleading Congress or lying to the members about its business practices.
The letter also comes a few days after a report emerged revealing that Amazon was conducting a campaign of copying products and rigging search results in India to increase sales of its own brands. However, Amazon had denied the allegations.
According to the House members, the news reports contradict the sworn testimony and representations of Amazon’s top executives, including former CEO Jeff Bezos.
At the time, Amazon stated that the company and its executives didn’t mislead the committee, adding that the stories published in the major media outlets were inaccurate.
In the letter sent to the United States attorney general today, the lawmakers cited stories from some of the leading media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, Reuters and Politico, regarding the company’s e-commerce business practices.
