Free & Fair Markets Initiative Letter to FTC Chair Lina M. Khan Re: Amazon India

October 13, 2021 

Chairwoman Lina M. Khan
Federal Trade Commission
400 7th St., SW
Washington, DC 20024

Dear Chairwoman Khan, 

As you are aware, a recent investigation by Reuters exposed serious ethical and competitive violations by Amazon’s subsidiary, Amazon India, revealing how the company exploited valuable data from products sold by sellers on its platform and in turn cloned those products for its own profit. The platform’s search results were also manipulated to list these copied products among the top results, coming at the expense of its independent third-party sellers.  

Since September of 2012, the United States and India have participated in an agreement to create a framework that provides for enforcement cooperation between U.S. and Indian authorities to jointly investigate competition-related matters. The terms of the agreement encourage that Indian and U.S. authorities exchange information on current and contemplated policy and enforcement priorities, as well as provide assistance to one another in supporting action that would promote greater economic competition in their respective countries. 

This agreement was established to address precisely the kind of alarming situation that is unfolding in India, with Amazon continuing to stifle its competition — both domestically and abroad — to control its monopoly power.  

The Free & Fair Markets Initiative is committed to advocating for a fair, modern marketplace for all Americans. We are greatly concerned by reports of Amazon’s anticompetitive practices, and we are even more troubled by the company’s growing influence in the global marketplace — particularly as India becomes even more essential for Amazon’s plans for further growth. 

Given our mutual concerns about the dangerous power held by Amazon and the threat it poses to consumers, small businesses, and American taxpayers, we strongly urge the FTC to take this opportunity and exercise its jurisdiction, per the agreements of the memorandum, to hold Amazon accountable for its unfair practices.  

It is crucial that the company’s actions do not go unchecked, and we believe the FTC has a responsibility to uphold the future of fair marketplace competition. 

Sincerely, 
The Free & Fair Markets Initiative

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