Bundeskartellamt initiates an antitrust abuse proceedings against Amazon because of the terms and conditions and the procedures

The Federal Cartel Office has today launched abuse proceedings against Amazon, the terms and conditions and behaviors Amazon against the dealers in the German marketplace to check amazon.de.

Andreas Mundt, President of the Bundeskartellamt: “"Amazon itself is the largest online retailer and operates by far the largest online marketplace in Germany. Many dealers and manufacturers are dependent on the range of the Amazon marketplace for online sales. Amazon acts as a kind of "gatekeeper" to customers. The dual role as the largest retailer and the largest market place has the potential for disabilities of other dealers on the platform. Because of the many available to us, we will examine complaints, if Amazon uses its market position to the detriment of traders operating in the marketplace. The terms and conditions and behaviors Amazon against the dealers are thus treated comprehensively to the test. "”

Potentially abusive terms and conditions and related behaviors relate inter alia to liability rules to the detriment of traders in connection with jurisdiction- and choice of law clauses, Rules to Product Reviews, intransparent layoffs and closures of merchant accounts, Withholding from payments and delayed payments, Clauses granting rights to the ready to be supplied by the distributor product material and financial conditions for pan-European mail.

Condition for an antitrust relevance of behavior is, inter alia,, that Amazon has a dominant position or that traders Amazon depend. For both are indications exist, in particular on a possible market for marketplace services for online sales to consumers. This will now review the Federal Cartel closer and identify.

Trigger for the process are numerous complaints from traders about the business practices of Amazon, who have reached the German Federal Cartel Office in the recent past.

On the basis of European competition law, the European Commission has started investigations into Amazon's European marketplaces, mainly relating to the collection and use of transaction data through Amazon. For this, the Commission has in the summer 2018 u.a. sent comprehensive questionnaires to several hundred German traders. The process launched today by the Federal Cartel Office and the Commission procedures complement each other. While the Commission examined in particular the data used by Amazon to the detriment of marketplace merchants, the Federal Cartel Office focuses on the terms and conditions and behavioral practices on the German Amazon Market against the dealers.

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