Amazon is being investigated by EU antitrust regulators over allegations that it misuses “sensitive data” from retailers that sell on its ecommerce marketplace.
EU competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager said she would take a “very close look” at the way the ecommerce giant operates and the way it draws up its standard contracts with marketplace sellers, the BBC has reported.
The investigation will also look at how retailers qualify for Amazon’s ‘Buy Box’ – a button that allows customers to directly add a product to their digital shopping cart on the platform.
Vestager said Amazon continuously collects data about the activity on its platform.
“Amazon appears to use competitively sensitive information – about marketplace sellers, their products and transactions on the marketplace,” she said.
Brussels has been investigating Amazon’s business practices for the best part of a year, looking at the company’s dual role as both a retailer in its own right and a host for third-party merchants.
An Amazon spokesman said: “We will cooperate fully with the European Commission and continue working hard to support businesses of all sizes and help them grow.”
The ecommerce titan is also facing regulatory action in the UK, after the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) cast a shadow on its potential investment into food delivery service Deliveroo earlier this month.
The CMA issued an initial enforcement order on July 5 that paused the deal and it is yet to decide on whether or not to launch a full investigation.
The regulator said it “has reasonable grounds for suspecting” the planned investment would “result in Amazon and Deliveroo ceasing to be distinct” entities.
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