Late yesterday Patently Apple posted a report about the EU Parliament being unable to pass legislation that would clamp down on the top U.S. Tech companies, mainly Apple, Google, Amazon, and Facebook. Today, we’re learning that the four antitrust bills in question in the U.S. were advanced by the House Judiciary Committee in June but have yet to get a floor vote. Senators have said they plan to introduce similar bills as soon as this month.
Reuters is reporting today that a coalition of anti-monopoly groups attacked claims by U.S. technology giants like Apple and Google that bills aiming to crimp their power pose national security risks, arguing that over-reliance on a handful of companies is more dangerous.
The most powerful U.S. tech companies put shareholder profit over public interest, according to a letter from public advocacy groups obtained by Bloomberg News that rejects warnings about a series of antitrust bills before Congress.
The letter addressed to House leaders seeks to rebut the argument — voiced recently by several former national security officials — that moving forward with legislation targeting Apple Inc. Facebook Inc., Amazon.com Inc., and Alphabet Inc.’s Google would disadvantage U.S. companies and compromise their partnerships with the Pentagon.
In the letter, the groups highlight examples including Apple’s supply-chain reliance on China and reports that U.S. tech companies aid in Chinese surveillance and censorship. The groups argue that business decisions in the interest of creating value for shareholders will always win out over national security and human rights concerns.
“Big Tech is not here to help national security or the public interest, but to maintain monopoly rents and market power,” the groups write. “It is codified in their corporate structure and law. It is the government’s job to protect our national security, not Mark Zuckerberg’s”.
On the flip side, a paper published last month by a tech industry group said legislation that targets a handful of U.S. tech firms gives an undue advantage to global competitors and would undo the main objective of another Senate bill to invest in U.S. innovation and counter technological advances in China.
Former Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats, who advised on the paper, said lawmakers should consult with national security experts and intelligence committees before pushing the antitrust bills forward.
Source: source