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Big tech firms including Apple, Google face probe of small deals

  • US antitrust officials has demanded information from Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft about their acquisitions of start-ups
  • The move comes amid widespread criticism that antitrust officials have been too permissive in allowing tech giants to buy rivals

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This January 28, 2015 file photo shows the Federal Trade Commission building in Washington. Federal regulators are amping up their investigation of the market dominance of five giant tech companies, demanding detailed information on their acquisitions back to 2010. Photo: AP
Bloomberg
US technology giants face a new wave of scrutiny from antitrust officials, as the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) demands information about their acquisitions of start-ups that may have eliminated emerging competitors.
The FTC issued orders to Alphabet’s Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft for information on the terms and purposes of transactions they closed from the beginning of 2010 through 2019, the agency said Tuesday.

“Digital technology companies are a big part of the economy and our daily lives,” FTC Chairman Joe Simons said in a statement. “This initiative will enable the Commission to take a closer look at acquisitions in this important sector, and also to evaluate whether the federal agencies are getting adequate notice of transactions that might harm competition.”

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Joe Simon speaks during a press conference at the FTC headquarters in Washington, DC on September 4, 2019. File photo: AFP
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Joe Simon speaks during a press conference at the FTC headquarters in Washington, DC on September 4, 2019. File photo: AFP

The FTC’s move, which is likely to entail reviews of hundreds of deals, comes amid widespread criticism that antitrust officials have been too permissive in allowing tech giants to buy rivals, strengthening their dominance. The agency’s orders take aim not at big deals, but those that were too small to be reported to regulators but may have targeted nascent competitors.

The study, which is focused on “research and policy,” can lead to enforcement action, including unwinding transactions the FTC finds were problematic, Simons told reporters on Tuesday.

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