US FTC Sharpens Antitrust Blade Against IT Giants

US FTC Expands Investigation into Big 5 IT Companies

Requests Acquisition Information of Small and Medium Enterprises over the Past Decade

"Focus on Potential Unfair Transactions Involving Competitors and Startups"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has ordered the Big 5 information technology (IT) companies to provide detailed information regarding their acquisitions of startups and other small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The U.S. FTC is a representative regulatory agency similar to South Korea's Fair Trade Commission. Unlike previous broad investigations into whether these companies abused their market dominance, this time the FTC is demanding specific data, which is interpreted as an increased level of pressure.

According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on the 11th (local time), the U.S. FTC has ordered Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft (MS), and Alphabet, Google's parent company, to submit information related to their acquisitions of SMEs over the past 10 years. Specifically, the FTC requested details on acquisitions made between 2010 and 2019, including the scope and purpose of these acquisitions.

The FTC stated, "We will examine whether the giant IT companies engaged in unfair transactions related to potential competitors or startups." They also explained that there is no special purpose behind this investigation.

A Microsoft spokesperson said, "We will cooperate with the FTC regarding this investigation." The other four companies did not issue separate statements.

This is not the first antitrust investigation by the FTC targeting IT companies. The FTC has previously investigated whether major IT companies like Google and Facebook abused their dominant market positions to undermine fair competition. Additionally, the FTC established a task force (TF) last year to examine potential antitrust violations across the IT industry. However, the FTC effectively gave Google a 'pass' by concluding its investigation with only minor algorithm adjustments. Compared to that, this investigation is interpreted as a more intensified level of scrutiny. The U.S. Department of Justice is also conducting a separate investigation.

Analysts suggest that the U.S. government's targeting of the Big 5 IT giants is due to their growing market influence and the increased risk of abusing their dominant positions. The combined market capitalization of these five IT companies reaches approximately $5.2 trillion (about 6,038 trillion KRW). Although these five companies represent only 1% of the S&P 500's 500 largest companies, they account for more than 17% of the total market capitalization. Some analysts argue that these IT companies have shown a so-called "kill zone" pattern, acquiring new startups to prevent them from emerging as competitors.

There are also criticisms that President Donald Trump, ahead of the presidential election, is attempting to rein in IT companies. U.S. IT companies are perceived as pro-Democratic, and Trump has repeatedly demanded thorough investigations, claiming that "big social media companies suppress conservative voices online."

Meanwhile, on the same day, just hours after President Trump announced that the presidential agency FTC would expand antitrust investigations, he addressed these companies, saying, "Over the past 144 days, we have witnessed a record-breaking stock market," adding, "This also means jobs." He further said, "MAGA has MAGA." MAGA refers both to the first letters of Microsoft, Apple, Google, and Amazon?IT companies with market caps exceeding $1 trillion?and to Trump's political slogan "Make America Great Again." This has been interpreted as Trump publicly courting these companies, which have performed strongly in the U.S. stock market, employing a "carrot and stick" strategy.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.