- Apple is a bit larger
today than the company
created by Steve Jobs
in his parents' garage.
- Facebook is about putting
power in people's hands.
- Getting access to information
is an important human rights.
- [Narrator] The chief
executives of Apple,
Facebook and Alphabet are
congressional hearings veterans.
They'll be joined by first timer,
Amazon CEO, Jeff Bezos on Wednesday
as all four come virtually
before a House Judiciary Subcommittee.
The topic this time is one that strikes
at the heart of each of their companies,
whether new laws are needed
to reign in big tech.
- This is an unusual moment
when we've got the CEOs
of four of the five
largest companies in America
showing up at a hearing at the same time
testifying in a hostile environment
about how they became so large
and whether they acquired
their dominant position
in the market legally.
- [Narrator] The bipartisan investigation
is looking at whether US
antitrust laws need to be updated.
- These online platforms are
in some ways a new phenomenon,
certainly new enough
that they didn't exist
when US antitrust laws,
which are decades old, were written.
- Some lawmakers say the tech giants
are wielding excessive power over markets,
such as online retail,
online advertising and smartphone apps.
Amazon dominates online
retail with nearly 40%
of US online shopping
occurring on its platform.
Amazon with a market value
of about $1.5 trillion
is facing scrutiny over
whether it unfairly uses
its size and platform against competitors
and other sellers on its site.
Jeff Bezos, Amazon CEO,
came under pressure
to testify to Congress after
the Wall Street Journal
reported in April that
Amazon was using data
from its own sellers to
launch competing products.
Amazon says it strictly
prohibits its employees
from using seller data to determine
which private label products to launch.
Wednesday's hearing will be the first time
the world's richest man
testifies before Congress.
- It will be a new experience for him.
And it'll be interesting
to see how he responds.
- [Narrator] Lawmakers
are expected to challenge
Amazon's contention that
its business practices
don't drown out competitors.
Bezos in the opening
statement who released says,
"Amazon accounts for less
than 4% of retail in the US.
And unlike industries
that are winner-take-all,
there's room in retail for many winners."
Bezos testimony comes as the
Federal Trade Commission,
along with some states, is
probing Whether Amazon's
practices hurt competition.
Apple's CEO, Tim cook,
is expected to defend
how his company's app store operates.
It generates about $15 billion
in annual sales for Apple.
Developers, customers
and lawmakers are balking
at the 30% cut the company takes on sales.
It's the only app store available
on more than 900 million
iPhones worldwide.
Apple's argued that it's not a monopolist
and a study at commission
to have Wednesday's hearing says,
"The 30% fee is fair and similar
to other digital marketplaces."
Mr. Cook is set to tell lawmakers,
"Apple does not have a
dominant market share
in any market where we do business."
- I am proud to represent
Apple before you today.
- [Ryan] Tim Cook has
appeared before Congress
before back in 2013 and
to Apple's tax practices.
- Can you understand there's a perception
of unfair advantage here, Mr. Cook?
- Sir, I see this as a very complex topic.
- [Ryan] That is not an
easy place to testify,
and he kept his cool for
almost two hours in that forum.
- I'm committed to
being fully transparent,
including with policy makers.
- [Narrator] Sundar
Pichai, the CEO of Google's
parent company Alphabet
testifies as his company
faces a potential antitrust lawsuit
from the US justice department
and a group of states.
Their focus is on Google's ad business.
Google has repeatedly denied
that it runs its business
in an anti-competitive manner.
Mr. Pichai plans to say that
because of his company's tools,
"Businesses on Main Street
can compete in a way
that wasn't possible 20 years
ago, including globally."
But critics say the
company uses its dominance
in search to stifle competition.
- The stakes are high for
Google in this hearing,
although they may not
get the most questions,
they are facing the most advanced
antitrust investigation of the four firms.
We expect the US regulators
to file a lawsuit potentially
as early as this summer against Google.
And so what Mr. Pichai says could factor
into that and he's gonna
have to be on his guard.
- [Narrator] Facebook CEO, Mark
Zuckerberg, is also expected
to face questions about
his company's dominance
along with Google of the US
digital advertising market.
- Mr. Zuckerberg is the youngest
of the forest CEOs to testify,
but he's actually testified
more than the other three, Matt.
He's been there three times
in the last few years.
- I recognize that we
play an important role
in society and have unique
responsibilities because of that.
- [Ryan] He's becoming
quite practiced at this.
Nevertheless, the stakes
are high for Facebook.
- [Narrator] Facebook owned platforms,
including Instagram and WhatsApp
have more than 2.5
billion users worldwide.
Some critics of the company
are calling for Facebook
to be forced to divest
Instagram and WhatsApp.
Mr. Zuckerberg plans to
tell the subcommittee,
"At Facebook, we compete hard,
because we're up against other smart
and innovative companies
that are determined to win."
The four tech titans appear
to be on the same page,
arguing their companies innovate
and don't unfairly dominate.
- It's hard to say that
this hearing will lead
to specific outcomes on its own,
like a change in the
law or an antitrust case
against these companies.
But these hearings do matter
in the court of public opinion
and whether the CEO's
handled themselves well
and defend themselves
well will be important
for how their companies are perceived
and how the next administration,
whoever it is, approaches them.
(soft music)
