The EU to formally charge Amazon for antitrust violations, report says

European regulators will announce antitrust charges against Amazon on Tuesday, the Financial Times reports, citing people with knowledge of the matter.

At the crux of the case is Amazon's position as a retailer that sells goods but also acts as a marketplace for third-party vendors. The European Commission will likely charge Amazon for abusing the data it has gathered on these third-party companies to better compete with them. 

The charges stem from a probe launched in July 2019. The Commission said at the time it will investigate the agreements between Amazon and marketplace sellers, which allow Amazon's retail business to analyze and use third-party seller data, as well as the role of that data in the selection of retailers included in Amazon's "Buy Box," which allows buyers to add items from a specific retailer directly into shopping carts.  Read more...