Alena Kravchenko
A U.S. antitrust bill that that targets Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) may not get out of the Senate before Congress recesses for the Summer.
The American Innovation and Choice Online Act, whose sponsors include Sen. Amy Klobucher (D-MN) and Sen. Chuck Grassley (D-IA), may be delayed as a previously waylaid reconciliation package may sideline other legislation, according to CTFN report on Thursday.
The American Innovation and Choice Online Act, or AICOA, is intended to prevent the tech giants from favoring their own services over competitors. The legislation received backing from the U.S. Justice Department, which has explicitly expressed support for the AICOA, according to a Wall Street Journal report in late March. The legislation passed the Senate Judiciary Committee in January and was supported by all the panel’s Democrats and five Republicans.
It’s possible that Republican senators may decide to add additional amendments to the AICOA when its introduced that may serve to complicate and delay the process, CTFN said, citing a tech lobbyist close to the matter.
And although Klobucher, the main proponent of the antitrust legislation has said AICOA has the 60 votes to pass the Senate, Sen. Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY) office said it’s still working with Klobucher to get the “necessary support” to pass the bill, CTFN reported.
CTFN has previously suggested that that decision to have a floor vote on the AICOA comes down to whether Schumer will decide to dedicate the necessary time and energy to the legislation.
Last month Politico reported that Amazon (AMZN) CEO Andy Jassy has been lobbying against the AICOA legislation, including calling Senate Majority Leader Schumer.
Apple (AAPL) warned in January that the pending legislation floating around in the Senate would hurt the company’s privacy protection tool that it rolled out last year and may aid “those who have been irresponsible with users’ data.”
