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Article

Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021)

Amazon & Antitrust: Restoring Competition in the Digital Economy through Structural Separation Policy

Submitted
July 14, 2022
Published
2022-07-17

Abstract

The rapid innovation witnessed in the modern digital economy has drawn comparison to the policy environment of the early 19th century. With calls for contemporary antitrust action increasing, leading to the House Subcommittee on Antitrust report on the state of Competition in Digital Markets. The report opines the anti-competitive practices committed by digital monopolies (Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google) and their harmful results on consumers and competition. This paper will argue that the current laws available to enforce antitrust action are insufficient to regulate digital markets. The case study into Amazon’s marketplace behaviour demonstrates the need for regulatory renewal and the implementation of structural separations to prohibit conflicts of interest between the operators of marketplaces and promotion of their own private label brands. The paper provides the rationale for policymakers to renew antitrust legislation to adapt for the digital age.