US antitrust proposals could have huge impact on Big Tech, Internet

WASHINGTON • The antitrust overhaul package unveiled in the US Congress targeting Big Tech, if enacted, could have a far-reaching impact on how people use the Internet and on America's biggest and most successful companies.

The five Bills, due for a committee vote on Wednesday, could pave the way for a reorganisation or break-up of giants like Facebook, Google, Apple and Amazon while reshaping the Internet ecosystem.

The measures would stop tech giants from operating a platform for third parties while offering competing services on those platforms, dealing a major blow to the likes of Apple and Amazon.

Lawmakers also are seeking to ban tech firms from prioritising their own products or services.

Another measure would require data portability and inter-operability, which could make it easier for people to quit Facebook, for example, while keeping their data and contacts.

The largest tech firms additionally would be barred from acquiring competitors under the package, which would also add funds for antitrust enforcement.

Yale University's Professor Fiona Scott Morton, a former US official who has written extensively on Big Tech, said the legislation stems from the failure of antitrust enforcement in the United States and elsewhere to make a dent in the dominance of major technology firms.

"This is regulation, it's not antitrust anymore," Prof Morton said, adding that if the Bills are enacted, Apple might have to sell or shut down its music service so that it does not discriminate against rivals such as Spotify.

An inter-operability requirement "would be very profound for consumers because it would let people join social networks other than Facebook and (Facebook-owned) Instagram and stay in contact with their friends", she noted.

The package comes amid signs of a more aggressive stance by Washington against dominant tech firms, including President Joe Biden's nomination of Ms Lina Khan - a prominent advocate of breaking up Big Tech - to head the Federal Trade Commission, one of the agencies charged with antitrust enforcement.

The package has some support from Republicans, signalling a likelihood of passage in the full House of Representatives. The fate in the Senate is less clear.

The measures come following a 16-month investigation led by an antitrust subcommittee which concluded that tech giants are abusing their dominant positions and have too much power in the economy.

Cleveland State University's Professor Christopher Sagers, who specialises in antitrust law, said the package represents a radical approach to dealing with tech firms' growing power.

The Bills "would make the platforms operate more like airlines or utility companies, which have to provide their services to anyone who wants them, and not give anyone (or themselves) discriminatory advantages", Prof Sagers said. "These laws also could bring an end to some products that are very popular."

He added: "I'm not sure how Apple could continue even selling its own mobile software, for example, if iOS devices or the App Store were denominated 'covered platforms', and there could be consequences for products like Amazon Prime, Google Maps, books digitised in the Google Books project, and who knows what else."

The impact, however, might not be bad in the long run as "markets rearrange themselves and new competitors turn up to replace them", he said. However, he added that their consequences might be hard to predict.

Other analysts offered stark warnings against unforeseen consequences of upending the massively successful firms.

Mr Iain Murray, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, said the measures might mean a firm such as Apple would need to shut its App Store, ship "blank phones" without any apps, or spin off its phone division.

"For the most part, the average consumer will see their user experience severely degraded," he said.

The legislation mirrors Europe's Digital Markets Act and is likely to distort competition, said Mr Aurelien Portuese of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, a think-tank which often reflects the industry's views.

He said the law comes amid a wave of resentment towards Big Tech but may ultimately hurt consumers by allowing less efficient firms to gain in the marketplace.

"Consumers may no longer be able to benefit from large companies' economies of scale," he said.

The legislative package "reveals a profound lack of practical understanding of how the tech industry operates, and needs to operate, in order to remain competitive, relevant, profitable and innovative", said analyst Olivier Blanchard at Futurum Research in a blog post.

"Do Big Tech companies hold too much power? You could argue that, sure," he said. "But if the objective is to keep very large, very powerful companies in check, Congress could approach the problem by establishing guardrails that protect consumers and competition without taking a wrecking ball to an entire system."

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE