US government takes on big tech with new competition investigation

The US department of justice has announced a broad competition investigation into the leading online platforms, raising the stakes in Washington’s scrutiny of Big Tech’s power over growing parts of the economy.The agency said it would look into how the platforms had achieved their market power, and whether they were “engaging in practices that have reduced competition, stifled innovation or otherwise harmed consumers”. Though it did not name the companies under investigation, the department said in a statement it would look into “widespread concerns” expressed about “search, social media and some retail services online” – suggesting that Google, Facebook and Amazon will be at the centre of the review.