AG Nominee Barr May Swing Anti-Trust Hammer At Amazon, Facebook And Google

[Swordsmyth]

President Trump's nominee for Attorney General, William Barr, signaled during his confirmation hearing on Tuesday that he may put the screws to tech monopolies.
When asked by Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) whether he thought antitrust laws were there "to protect consumers," Barr responded that he is interested in "reassessing" Justice Department antitrust policies when it comes to tech giants.

"Yes, I mean generally that’s where I stand that is the purpose of anti-trust law obviously is to protect competition and competition ultimately that rebounds to consumer benefits. At the same time, I’m sort of interested in stepping back and reassessing or learning more about how the anti-trust division has been functioning and what their priorities are. I don’t think big is necessarily bad, but I think a lot of people wonder how such huge behemoths that now exist in Silicon Valley have taken shape under the nose of anti-trust enforcers."

When asked by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) about the DOJ's role in terms of working with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to tackle anti-competitive behavior, Barr said: "I would like to weigh in to some of these issues."

"I'd like to have the antitrust [division] support that effort to get more involved in reviewing the situation from a competition standpoint. I also am interested in the issue of privacy. And the question of who owns this data. And, you know, it's not an area that I've studied closely or become an expert in. But I think it's important for the department to get more involved in these questions."

More at: https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-...ook-and-google

[Brian4Liberty]

a lot of people wonder how such huge behemoths that now exist in Silicon Valley have taken shape under the nose of anti-trust enforcers

It’s not really an issue that Facebook and Google have so many users. But it could be argued that perhaps a little more scrutiny was warranted with so much M&A activity over the years. For example, very large purchases such as YouTube, and purchases of direct competitors.

[Origanalist]

His problem is it sounds like he want to swing that hammer far and wide. Not a fan of the internet oligarchy but screw this guy. (Barr)

[Swordsmyth]

His problem is it sounds like he want to swing that hammer far and wide. Not a fan of the internet oligarchy but screw this guy. (Barr)

I don't like him for many reasons but he claims to be reticent about swinging the hammer:

Barr acknowledged he still doesn't have the solutions to these questions, including about whether the Justice Department has the authority to address alleged bias on online platforms. He said he'd "have to think long and hard before I said that it was really the stuff of an antitrust matter." But he also expressed concern over the "network effects" that have allowed tech companies to become "so powerful that particular sectors could essentially be subsumed into these networks."
Whoever is confirmed as attorney general could play a key role in shaping the enforcement of antitrust regulation in the coming years. -CNBC

[Stratovarious]

My issue with Amazon Google Youtube Twitter, is that they are de facto public utilities, yet
they are making policy and decisions regarding what opinions they will tolerate, what speech
they will allow, and who is allowed to do the speaking,
that is the much larger issue than 'how big' a company is.

[RonZeplin]

Barr, GHW Bush, Ted Kennedy - Keeping the Legacy Alive.

[Grandmastersexsay]

My issue with Amazon Google Youtube Twitter, is that they are de facto public utilities,

No they are not.

[TheCount]

Yaaaaay regulation! Woohoo!

[Superfluous Man]

His problem is it sounds like he want to swing that hammer far and wide. Not a fan of the internet oligarchy but screw this guy. (Barr)

Yes, and when he says, "I also am interested in the issue of privacy. And the question of who owns this data," he surely means that the entity that ought to own it is the federal government, and not these private companies.

[Warlord]

I wonder if he will split YouTube from Google and INSTAGRAM from Fedbook?

[enhanced_deficit]

AG Nominee Barr May Swing Anti-Trust Hammer At Amazon, Facebook And Google

Words matter, these words if confirmed as non-fakewnews would have huge impact on our industries.


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[parocks]

His problem is it sounds like he want to swing that hammer far and wide. Not a fan of the internet oligarchy but screw this guy. (Barr)

I would like him to swing that hammer far and wide.

Tear as much as possible to shreds. Is Disney buying Fox? Answer should be NOT ALLOWED.

They got off track a long long time ago. Rip it to shreds.

[Origanalist]

I would like him to swing that hammer far and wide.

Tear as much as possible to shreds. Is Disney buying Fox? Answer should be NOT ALLOWED.

They got off track a long long time ago. Rip it to shreds.

I wasn't referring to what he said about the internet. There are plenty of reasons to not like this guy at all that have nothing to do with this subject.