Amazon Tells Congress CEO Jeff Bezos Ready To Testify In Antitrust Probe

Amazon.com Inc. AMZN lawyers in a letter on Sunday told the House of Representative members that the company's Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos would be willing to testify in the legislative body's probe into its alleged antitrust practices, the Wall Street Journal reported.

What Happened

"We are committed to cooperating with your inquiry and will make the appropriate executive available to testify," Robert Kelner, a partner at Covington & Burling LLP, a law firm representing Amazon, said in the letter, according to Journal.

"This includes making Jeff Bezos available to testify at a hearing with the other CEOs this summer."

The House Judiciary Committee last week sent letters to Facebook Inc. FB, Apple Inc. AAPL, Alphabet Inc. GOOGL GOOG subsidiary Google, and Amazon, asking for commitment of CEOs to testify in the antitrust probe facing the companies, the Journal noted.

It isn't immediately clear if Bezos will be eager to testify in case other CEOs deny the committee's request.

Why It Matters

The technology giants are facing antitrust probes over several issues, including their acquisition of smaller startups that could potentially develop competing products.

Amazon has particularly faced criticism for its dual role as a marketplace and a seller at the same time. The e-commerce company's executives were reportedly using privileged data of third-party sellers on its platform to decide which of their own original product line to use, the Journal reported in April.

The European Union is also reportedly planning to bring formal charges against Amazon for antitrust practices in the coming weeks.

Amazon Price Action

Amazon shares closed nearly 1.1% higher at $2,572.68 on Monday. The shares traded nearly 0.6% lower at $2,588 in the after-hours session.