Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Google CEOs Agree To Jointly Testify Before Congress In Antitrust Case

The chief executive officers of Facebook Inc. FB, Amazon.com Inc. AMZN, Apple Inc. AAPL, and Google parent company Alphabet Inc. GOOG GOOGL have all agreed to testify before the Congress in an ongoing antitrust investigation, CNBC reported Wednesday.

What Happened

Apple CEO Tim Cook was the last to come on board, as other companies provisionally agreed to the appearance of their CEOs if the other companies do the same, CNBC noted. Amazon, in a letter to the House Judiciary Committee last month, said CEO Jeff Bezos would be available to testify.

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and Cook have all individually made congressional testimonies before, but this will be the first time for Bezos to testify before the Congress.

According to CNBC, the hearing is likely to take place in July and could happen virtually due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Why It Matters

The House Judiciary Committee last year launched a bipartisan inquiry into alleged anticompetitive practices at the largest technology firms and requested the companies to turn over all relevant documents related to acquisitions and mergers.

Price Action

Facebook shares closed 4.6% higher at $237.55 on Wednesday and were down nearly 0.2% in the after-hours session.

Apple stock closed 0.19% lower at $364.11 per share, and Alphabet Class A shares closed 1.7% lower, both were unchanged in the after-hours.

Amazon stock closed 4.35% lower at $2,878.70 per share.