Anti-Monopoly Facebook and Amazon Lead Political Lobbying Expenditures

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] As Facebook and Amazon face increasing antitrust regulatory moves from the U.S. Congress and others targeting big tech companies, it has been revealed that their lobbying expenditures last year reached an all-time high.

On the 24th (local time), according to the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP), a U.S. private organization, Bloomberg News reported that Facebook spent $19.7 million on political lobbying last year, while Amazon spent $18.7 million during the same period.

The scale of these lobbying expenditures represents an increase of 56% and 30%, respectively, compared to two years ago, surpassing the largest U.S. telecom company Comcast ($14.4 million) and the world's largest defense contractor Lockheed Martin ($13 million).

Facebook and Amazon did not rank among the top companies in political lobbying expenditures in 2017, but Bloomberg analyzed that they significantly increased their lobbying spending after undergoing unprecedented antitrust investigations during the Donald Trump administration.

Last year, Facebook was heavily targeted by the Trump administration for alleged violations of antitrust laws. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 46 states across the country filed an antitrust lawsuit in December in a federal court in Washington, D.C., accusing Facebook of 'predatory' practices by acquiring emerging IT companies that hinder market competition. Facebook faced simultaneous antitrust investigations from regulatory agencies including the FTC and the Department of Justice.

As antitrust controversies expanded, the possibility of Facebook's corporate breakup emerged. The FTC is demanding the divestiture of Instagram and WhatsApp, which Facebook acquired in 2012 and 2014 respectively, and is even considering nullifying the acquisitions.

Amazon is also under investigation by the FTC, California, and Washington state for potential antitrust violations. Amazon has been criticized for dominating local retail markets in the U.S. and worldwide while enjoying antitrust law exemptions as an internet company.

Led by David Cicilline, chairman of the Antitrust Subcommittee of the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, the U.S. Congress is pushing for antitrust law reforms.

Foreign media predict that the Joe Biden administration may file additional lawsuits against Facebook, Amazon, and others.

Earlier on the 23rd, the White House nominated Lina Khan, an antitrust expert and Columbia University professor, as a commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Professor Khan participated as a Democratic member of the U.S. House Judiciary Committee for a year and a half, contributing to reports that pointed out antitrust violations by IT tech giants abusing their market dominance.

Bloomberg News reported that Khan’s nomination as an FTC commissioner suggests that the Biden administration is considering a more aggressive application of laws against big tech companies.

The White House has also appointed Tim Wu, a critic of big tech companies and a Columbia University law professor, as the President’s Special Assistant for Technology and Competition Policy at the National Economic Council (NEC).

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