Congress running out of time on its Big Tech antitrust bill

AppleInsider

The bipartisan antitrust bill that aims to prevent Big Tech firms favoring their own services, faces a setback as Congress heads for its August recess without a vote.

US Capitol. Credit: Alejandro Barba

There have already been doubts over whether there is sufficient support to pass the American Choice and Innovation Act in to law. Senate Majority Leader Senator Chuck Schumer said in July that the bill remained "high priority," but did not then have the 60 votes needed.

Schumer also said then that he did not believe that putting the bill to a vote would successfully pressure sufficient undecided voters. Now according to the Wall Street Journal, Schumer intends to hold a vote in September, following the August Congress recess.

However, the number of legislative days available to pass the bill is shrinking. Big Tech firms can effectively declare victory if Congress fails to vote.

"If the bill had the support its supporters contended, it wouldn't be a bill, it would be a law," Matt Schruers, president of the Computer & Communications Industry Association, told the Wall Street Journal. The association describes itself as an "advocacy organization," and its members include Apple, Amazon, Meta, and Alphabet.

"We continue to have very strong bipartisan support in both chambers, and the votes to pass it in both chambers," Rep. David Cicilline (D., R.I.), said. "It's really just a matter of getting it on the calendar."

Congressman Cicilline is one of the bill's primary sponsors. Two others, Senators Amy Klobuchar (D., Minn.) and Chuck Grassley (R., Iowa), are reportedly holding bipartisan meetings to step up support for the bill.


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rob53

JP234 said:

I don't know anyone who supports this bill. There are no monopolies in Big Tech that even approach the market dominance of old line companies like Standard Oil or Bell Telepohone. Or Big Government.

Exactly! If they go after big tech for pushing their own products, Congress needs to go after every company in the USA because they all do the same thing. 

DAalseth

They are treating the wrong problem. They seem to think that the AppStore and GooglePlay are the root of the problem, while Amazon, Google, FaceBook, Uber, and some others are running around ignoring existing laws on worker safety, predatory behaviour, customer data security, privacy, and on and on because they think they don’t apply to them. 

But OMG we can’t have Apple setting actual standards as to what apps will go into their private AppStore. /s

Madbum

Idiotic politicians with their idiotic bills

maximara

Madbum said:

Idiotic politicians with their idiotic bills

Politicians have got to make a show of doing something...while actually doing nothing.

soundsinmotion

Actually a lot of these politicians are lobbied by the tech companies so they ties in with them, this billl won’t pass just for that mere reason. 

DAalseth

You know, I get the feeling that “Big Tech” is where the “Big Three” automakers were in 1962. Fat, abusive, turning out a decent if not great product, complacent. I just get a feeling that some little company will come out of nowhere and introduce a new way of doing things. Maybe a new phone OS, maybe a new online hang out, maybe a new way of putting customers and businesses together. I don’t know. If I did I’d be jumping all over it. But I get the feeling that for all the people who love Amazon, and gush over Android, or yes pine for the next Apple thing, there’s an undercurrent of discontent. Somebody is going to come in, be the next little upstart company that is “for the rest of us”. Someone will come in and drop the 21st century equivalent of the Toyota Corolla, or Honda Civic, or Apple II. When they do “big tech” will be caught completely flatfooted. They’ll disregard the little guy until one day they find that a lot of their customers, died in the wool Windows and Mac fans, hard core Android and iOS users have jumped ship for something better. 

It’ll be the best thing that could happen to them.

Madbum

soundsinmotion said:

Actually a lot of these politicians are lobbied by the tech companies so they ties in with them, this billl won’t pass just for that mere reason. 

In the case of this bill. Lobby well done. This bill reads like a European Union Communist doctrine 

maximara

DAalseth said:

You know, I get the feeling that “Big Tech” is where the “Big Three” automakers were in 1962. Fat, abusive, turning out a decent if not great product, complacent. I just get a feeling that some little company will come out of nowhere and introduce a new way of doing things. Maybe a new phone OS, maybe a new online hang out, maybe a new way of putting customers and businesses together. I don’t know. If I did I’d be jumping all over it. But I get the feeling that for all the people who love Amazon, and gush over Android, or yes pine for the next Apple thing, there’s an undercurrent of discontent. Somebody is going to come in, be the next little upstart company that is “for the rest of us”. Someone will come in and drop the 21st century equivalent of the Toyota Corolla, or Honda Civic, or Apple II. When they do “big tech” will be caught completely flatfooted. They’ll disregard the little guy until one day they find that a lot of their customers, died in the wool Windows and Mac fans, hard core Android and iOS users have jumped ship for something better. 

It’ll be the best thing that could happen to them.

A changing marketplace is Operation Normal.  Intel was king of the PC world until they got complacent and proceeded to do a series of boneheaded moves that allowed AMD to make headway and then thanks to Intel producing an insanely buggy CPU Apple said 'screw it, we'll design our own based on that ARM CPU we have had in our iPhones and iPads'.  Now everybody and his brother either are on the ARM bandwagon or have announced they are getting on...even Intel (though Intel is still trying to hold on to the increasingly clunky x86 with a weird x86/ARM hybrid)

I firmly believe if Sears had been run more intelligently they could have been Amazon.  Heck, Sears last general catalogue was in 1993; in 1994 Amazon (then Cadabra Inc) opened its doors.

entropys

DAalseth said:

They are treating the wrong problem. They seem to think that the AppStore and GooglePlay are the root of the problem, while Amazon, Google, FaceBook, Uber, and some others are running around ignoring existing laws on worker safety, predatory behaviour, customer data security, privacy, and on and on because they think they don’t apply to them. 

But OMG we can’t have Apple setting actual standards as to what apps will go into their private AppStore. /s

This. The fact is the politicians are enabling this behaviour, and going after app stores. Always follow the money, politicians act in corporate interests, not the people. Never ever trust a politician that claims to speak for the little people.  Actually, scratch that: never trust a politician.

davidw

soundsinmotion said:

Actually a lot of these politicians are lobbied by the tech companies so they ties in with them, this billl won’t pass just for that mere reason. 

It's only fair. The politicians that introduced this bill were also lobbied by companies with self interest. Or do you actually think the Coalition for App Fairness represents consumers? You know the bill is totally self interest when they have to name it ..... "The American Choice and Innovation Act", as though it has something to do with American choice or innovation. 

https://appfairness.org/coalition-for-app-fairness-statement-on-klobuchar-grassley-anti-preferencing-proposal/

If the CAF was fighting against supermarkets "unfair" tactic of placing their own much cheaper store brand of sodas on the same isle and shelve as Coca Cola and Pepsi, they would be representing Coca Cola and Pepsi, not the consumers shopping for sodas.