Samsung Latest Big Tech Accused of ‘Rampant’ Anti-Competitive Behavior Involving Amazon
The Indian watchdog concluded that Samsung colluded with Amazon to stifle competition. | Photo by Chung Sung-Jun / Getty Images.
Key Takeaways
- The Competition Commission of India (CCI) found that Samsung colluded with Amazon and Flipkart to launch products exclusively on their websites.
- An antitrust probe was launched following complaints by small business owners.
- Global Big Tech antitrust cases have accelerated recently.
Samsung is the latest target of a wave of antitrust cases that have hit some of the largest technology firms in the world in recent weeks.
As reported by Reuters on Sept. 16, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has found that Samsung colluded with Amazon and Flipkart to launch products exclusively on their respective websites, violating Indian competition law.
Samsung’s Illegal Launches
The charges against Samsung relate to India’s Competition Act (2002), which prohibits agreements restricting who can buy or sell goods.
An investigation into the practice was initially launched in 2020 following a complaint by a group representing small businesses that trade in smartphones and related accessories.
In addition to the allegations of restrictive agreements, the complaint also claims that Amazon and Flipkart gave preferential treatment to certain sellers and used predatory pricing to drive out smaller competitors.
Alongside Samsung, Xiaomi, Motorola, Realme, and OnePlus were also reportedly involved in the illegal collusion. The CCI’s reports said the retailers “deliberately downplayed” allegations of exclusive launches. However, investigations concluded that the practice was “rampant” nonetheless.
Amazon’s Antitrust Concerns
Amazon also faces regulatory challenges in the U.S., where the Federal Trade Commission and a coalition of states have accused the firm of using “a set of interlocking anticompetitive and unfair strategies to illegally maintain its monopoly power.”
The lawsuit describes a pattern of alleged antitrust abuses, including exclusive agreements prohibiting sellers from offering lower prices elsewhere. A trial is scheduled for October 2026.
While Amazon’s e-commerce business is being scrutinized in India, the firm’s data center arm is under scrutiny in the U.K.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is expected to publish the findings of a multi-year review of the cloud market in the U.K. A preliminary view of the probe found that two providers, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft, hold “significant market power,” setting the stage for potential enforcement action to level the playing field.
Of course, Amazon isn’t the only Big Tech company that is subject to competition probes. Historically, some of the biggest penalties ever issued for antitrust violations have been levied against Google. And the most consequential of them could still be to come.
Google Competition Probes
Despite already receiving a litany of charges over the years, Google’s antitrust headache shows no signs of dying down.
In an area where the EU has traditionally been the most active, U.S. authorities secured perhaps their biggest victory to date in August after a court ruled that Google held a monopoly in the market for online search services.
The Department of Justice and a coalition of states accused Google of “engaging in a systematic campaign to seize control” of the digital advertising technology market.
A second major U.S. lawsuit against the firm, which went to trial on Sept. 9, alleges that Google unfairly wielded its dominance in the AdTech market.
Following the search ruling, the Department of Justice is reportedly considering paths forward that include forcing Google to spin off parts of its business.
Breaking up the firm’s digital business empire is also a potential outcome of the EU’s AdTech probe, which found last year that “only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services would address its competition concerns.”
At the time, the European Union’s competition commissioner and long-time Google hawk Margrethe Vestager suggested the company could spin off its sell-side tools such as AdManager and AdX: “By doing so, we would put an end to the conflicts of interest,” she told a news conference.
However, as Vestager’s term comes to an end, the latest reports indicate that the Commission won’t order a breakup and will only require Google to end its anti-competitive practices.
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