Most people have seen the ads begging us to vote to keep our Amazon Prime paid for by CCIA.
Funny that an organization founded to promote “open markets” would oppose and pay for questionably inaccurate advertising to oppose S. 2992, the “American Innovation and Choice Online Act”.
S. 2992 is designed to protect our markets from gouging and other illegal activities and to give us an unbiased choice of products.
You see, currently Amazon and Google Shopping for example invite other businesses to list their products on their “marketplace” platform. They take money from the other businesses for ads, fees and other monetary compensation. Why do you suppose?
The reason is more product listings will rank better and sell more. Essentially, they build a HUGE alleged marketplace platform on the backs of the businesses which sell on their platform…. Then it’s gets really sketchy.
They take the revenue and invest in themselves with white label products and preferred seller relationships. White label products are products made by another company who allows Amazon for example to sell the same products as their own. They then charge money to the other businesses selling on their platform for ad placement. Most importantly in the age we live, NOTHING is more valuable that people’s information, preferences and online activities!
So, they build a HUGE experience on the back of the businesses with products to sell. Then use the research data collected to not only sell their white label knock-off products in their own marketplace against the very businesses who originally sold the products… But give their own products preferential position, ranks and exposure. Pretty shitty.
For years, tech companies like Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google have been rigging their online marketplaces to preference their own products & interests. Amazon reportedly used data from its third-party business sellers to replicate their products, while rigging the “marketplace” search results to favor their own knock-off versions of their products. Really shitty.
Why should you care?
You would not tolerate this behavior from a local store… Why? Because it’s shitty. More importantly, these giant tech companies have WAY to much information about us, way to much power over commerce and the monopolies they create kill small businesses and illegal situations.
They can price gouge, horde products to empty the market and then flood the market with the same products at 5000% mark up… Like Amazon did during Covid. In fact Amazon bought up so many shipping boxes that for more than a year many smaller merchants could ONLY buy boxes from Amazon. These activities are illegal.
Tech companies tend to get away with this fuckery because they have gaslighted average Americans. Judges, government and other regulatory agencies have a very limited understanding of tech in general. Lies, corruption and greed have driven these tech giants in to a position where they have far to much power & sway over the “American Way”.
Truth Is
Congressman David Cicciline (D-Rhode Island), a co-author of the legislation S. 2992 said, “This bill will not prevent Amazon from providing free shipping or other services to its Prime members.” In fact it only regulates the unfair advantage and illegal activity taking place… Which hurts Amazon’s bottom line. How sad…..
“Right now, unregulated tech monopolies have too much power over our economy,” David Cicciline (D-Rhode Island), said in a statement. “They are in a unique position to pick winners and losers, destroy small businesses, raise prices on consumers, and put folks out of work. Our agenda will level the playing field and ensure the wealthiest, most powerful tech monopolies play by the same rules as the rest of us.”
Senator Amy Klobuchar’s (D-Minnesota) American Innovation and Choice Online Act (S.2992), which would prohibit large tech companies from giving their own products preferential treatment. These necessity is obvious as these tech giants “go for the lie” and used their power, influence and money to pay for ads which serve only themselves.
