Biden targets big tech in executive order aimed at anti-competitive practices | Biden administration

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Joe Biden has signed an executive order targeting anti-competitive practices across the economy that could have major repercussions for America’s largest technology companies.

Friday’s order is Biden’s latest action on antitrust cases, which has delighted progressives who have been pushing for more action on corporate power — especially among big tech companies — for years.

The White House said more than a dozen federal agencies would be affected by the order, which includes 72 actions and proposals aimed at “immediately addressing some of the most pressing competition problems across our economy.”

At the signing ceremony at the White House, Biden denounced the current era of trade monopolies. “Instead of competing for consumers, they consume their competitors; rather than competing for workers, they find ways to gain the upper hand over labor.”

“Let me be clear: Capitalism without competition is not capitalism. It is exploitation.”

Latest actions targeting big technology التكنولوجيا

Technical measures proposed in the arrangement include restoring net neutrality, re-examining problematic mergers, pushing for rules against excessive corporate surveillance, preventing unfair termination fees from Internet service providers like Verizon and AT&T, and “right to repair” laws.

Biden called for increased scrutiny of mergers by leading technology companies, “with particular attention to ’emerging competitor takeovers, blockchain mergers, data backlogs, competition by ‘free’ products, and the impact on user privacy.”

This may affect previous mergers that were initially approved but have recently come under renewed scrutiny by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC), including the acquisition of Instagram by Facebook in 2012.

The actions targeting big tech acquisitions come weeks after Biden nominated antitrust researcher Lina Khan to the Federal Trade Commission, signaling a renewed effort to target big tech companies.

It also encourages the FTC to limit farm equipment manufacturers’ ability to limit the use of independent repair shops or do-it-yourself repairs—such as when tractor companies forbid farmers to repair their own tractors.

In the arrangement, Biden is also encouraging the FCC to restore net neutrality, measures aimed at preventing Internet service providers from favoring some content and sites over others, which were rolled back in 2017 under the Trump administration.

However, Internet freedom advocates say many of the actions Biden has encouraged the FCC to take cannot move forward until the administration nominates a fifth commissioner, as the four-person board of directors has been deadlocked in recent years.

Evan Greer, director of the digital rights organization Fight for the Future, said the administration needs to quickly appoint a commissioner who “has no ties to the telecom industry and will stand up to ISPs, who support restoring network neutrality, and who will expand broadband access to all.” .

“The executive order has a lot of great words in it, but we need to see some action for these words to mean anything,” she said.

Other industries affected

And it’s not just aimed at technology — Biden’s efforts to rein in corporate power also extend to his infrastructure plans, where he has called on major companies to pay their “fair share” of taxes to help fund his proposals.

“I’m not trying to convince anyone, but, I mean, just get in the game,” Biden, discussing the need to raise corporate taxes and wealthier Americans, said Wednesday.

The order would ban or limit non-competitive agreements to facilitate job changes and raise wages in some industries, allow rule changes that would pave the way for the sale of over-the-counter hearing aids in pharmacies, and ban excessive early termination fees by internet companies.

In the airline industry, management requires companies to provide clear, upfront disclosures about add-on fees and make it easier for customers to obtain refunds.

The order urges facilitating the interbank transfer process by requiring banks to allow customers to take their financial statements with them to another company.

It includes several provisions that can affect the agricultural industry. The USDA is calling for consideration of new rules specifying when meat can use “USA product” labels. Democratic lawmakers and union leaders cheered the order.

Senator Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat who chairs the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Competition Policy, said Biden’s executive order needs to be backed by action from Congress.

“Competition policy needs new energy and methods so that we can tackle the problem of monopoly in America,” Klobuchar said. “This means legislation to modernize our antitrust laws, but it also means reimagining what the federal government can do to promote competition under our existing laws.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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