US Bill to Curb Big Tech Supported by Dozens of Small and Large Companies

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Dozens of companies and business organizations sent a letter to members of the U.S. Congress on Monday urging them to support a bill that would rein in big tech companies like Amazon.com. (AMZN.O) and the alphabet (GOOGL.O) The Google.

Last week, Democratic US Senator Amy Klobuchar and lawmakers from both parties said they had the Senate votes needed to pass legislation that would block technology platforms, including Apple (AAPL.O) and Facebook, of their own business preference.

The companies supporting the measure, which include Yelp, Sonos, DuckDuckGo and Spotify, described it as a “moderate and reasonable bill that directly targets well-documented abuses by the largest Internet platforms.”

Other signatories include the American Booksellers Association, the American Independent Business Alliance, the Institute for Local Self-Reliance and the Kelkoo Group. Amazon.com, the Chamber of Commerce, and others oppose the measure. Read more

Supporters urged lawmakers to pass the bill, saying it would bring antitrust laws so small businesses can compete.

Last week, Klobuchar said she believed she had the 60 votes in the Senate needed to finish the debate and move on to a vote on the last section. There is a similar bill in the House of Representatives.

“It’s no surprise that Yelp and Spotify liked the bill because it was designed to help them. But senators tell us they don’t hear their constituents calling for changes to Amazon Basics and Google Maps,” the pro-tech Progress Chamber said. in the current situation.

Tech giants said the bill would threaten popular consumer products like Google Maps and AmazonBasics, and make it difficult for companies to protect the security and privacy of their users.

Carl Szabo of NetChoice said the pressure to get a vote on the bill was a sign he didn’t have enough support to get it passed. “This is the last looming moment in the Drowning Bill,” he said.

(Reporting by Diane Bartz) Editing by Chris Reese and David Gregorio

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