A footnote in a memo from the ethics counsel, earlier reported by Bloomberg, said Khan had been authorized to serve as a prosecutor on Amazon’s cases. But when Meta made a similar demand, Khan continued to lead the case, ignoring a non-binding recommendation from the agency’s top ethics official that she step aside.
Khan’s appointment to lead the FTC supercharged the Biden administration’s crackdown on Big Tech, which already includes complaints against Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Meta Platforms Inc., along with an investigation into Apple Inc.Īmazon says Khan should recuse herself, owing to her public statements about the company. In a prominent law review article, Khan argued that the existing antitrust enforcement framework was ill-equipped to tackle the potential harm Amazon poses to competition. Taking on Amazon promises to be a career-defining moment for the 34-year-old Khan, who rose to prominence articulating fresh analysis of how the Seattle-based company abuses its market power. Khan and her colleagues are keen to file before personnel changes in August, according to the people, who cautioned that the timing could slip.īased on her public comments, Khan is unlikely to accept compromises from Amazon and could seek to restructure the company - a dramatic outcome that Amazon would surely appeal.
The main allegation is expected to be that Amazon leverages its power to reward online merchants that use its logistics services and punish those who don’t.įTC investigators and Khan’s office have been honing the complaint for several months, two of the people said, and finalizing key details such as where to file suit. In the coming weeks, the agency plans to file a far-reaching antitrust suit focused on Amazon’s core online marketplace, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg and three people familiar with the case.
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