House Judiciary Members Claim Amazon Misled, Potentially Lied

Amazon misled the House Judiciary Committee and potentially lied about self-preferencing business practices when former CEO Jeff Bezos and other executives testified, committee members wrote CEO Andy Jassy Monday. Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y.; House Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David Cicilline, D-R.I.; House Antitrust Subcommittee ranking member Ken Buck, R-Colo.; and Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., signed the letter, requesting the company “correct the record” by Nov. 1. Citing news reports, the lawmakers described “a systematic campaign of creating knockoffs and manipulating search results to boost its own product lines in India,” and similar evidence about Amazon placing house-brand products ahead of competitors. They requested “exculpatory evidence to corroborate the prior testimony and statements on behalf of Amazon to the Committee.” The committee is considering a referral to DOJ for a potential criminal investigation, they wrote. Amazon and its executives didn’t mislead the committee and the company is seeking to correct inaccurate reporting, a spokesperson emailed: The company has “an internal policy, which goes beyond that of any other retailer’s policy that we’re aware of, that prohibits the use of individual seller data to develop Amazon private label products.” Potential violations are investigated, and search is developed to feature items customers want, regardless of whether they are in-house products, the company said.