Amazon wants to settle a pair of antitrust investigations in the EU in the hopes of avoiding hefty fines and guidelines to change its business practices, Reuters reported on Tuesday (November 9th).
Citing “people familiar with the matter,” the news agency said Amazon had entered into discussions with the European Commission (EC) and offered to make concessions. The EC has the power to impose fines on companies up to 10% of their turnover. In Amazon’s case, that fine would be $ 38.6 billion, based on its 2020 revenue.
The commission instructed Amazon last year to use its power – both in terms of data and size – to gain an unfair advantage over smaller competitors selling on its platform. The EC has also initiated an investigation into whether Amazon has committed to preferentially treating its own offers and those of sellers who use its delivery and logistics services.
Read more: Amazon mourns misconduct in legal action brought by European Union regulators
Amazon filed its own complaint against the EU earlier this year, saying it should not have given the Italian Competition Authority permission to sue Amazon and that the Italian complaint should have been included in the case wider EU.
The retail giant, along with Walmart’s Flipkart, faces a similar investigation in India, where that country’s competition authority is investigating whether companies have promoted selected sellers on their platforms and offered promotions. discounts that hindered competition. The commission had highlighted four antitrust behaviors allegedly practiced by Amazon and Flipkart, including prioritizing certain sellers with exclusive smartphone launches and selective discounts.
Read more: India speeds up antitrust investigation on Amazon, Walmart’s Flipkart
Amazon has also been fined $ 887 million by the Luxembourg National Data Protection Commission (CNDP), which claims the retail giant failed to comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) of the European Union.
See also: EU privacy regulator fines Amazon $ 887 million
According to Reuters, settlement talks in the matter could take months to conclude, and there is no guarantee that the two sides will reach an agreement. The EC declined to comment on the matter, Reuters said.
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