Recent attempts to rein in Big Tech and their grip on the internet

Published October 4, 2022 at 4:01 AM EDT

the logos of apple, meta, google and amazon in a quadrant — The House on Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022, approved sharply scaled-down legislation targeting the dominance of Big Tech companies by giving states greater power in antitrust cases and increasing money for federal regulators. The bipartisan measure, passed by a 242-184 vote, pales in comparison with a more ambitious package aimed at reining in Meta, Google, Amazon and Apple and cleared by key House and Senate committees.

A 16-month House probe found that Google, Amazon, Apple and Meta use their platforms to give their own products preference, often at the expense of smaller rivals. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) has sponsored several bipartisan bills including the American Innovation and Choice Act which is meant to curb their dominance over the internet.

Among other things, the bill would ban Big Tech companies from giving their own products preference over those made by others on the platforms they own. Privacy-focused technology companies are pushing for the legislation to pass because of how it could protect personal information.

On Cincinnati Edition we discuss the legislation and whether it has a chance of passing after the midterms when the make-up of the House and Senate changes.

Guests:

Sara Morrison, senior reporter, Vox's Recode
Dave Hatter, director of business growth, intrustIT

Listen to Cincinnati Edition live at noon M-F. Audio for this segment will be uploaded after 4 p.m. ET.

Never miss an episode by subscribing to our podcast: