Amazon Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) collection and use of consumer data is facing scrutiny by the UK’s competition watchdog following a similar investigation by European Union authorities.
According to an FT report on Thursday citing individuals familiar with the matter, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is planning a formal investigation into the e-commerce giant, particularly around how it uses the data it collects on its platform and how it decides which merchants to display in its “buy box” panel which customers click to add items to their shopping cart.
READ: Facebook rocked as UK and Europe start data abuse probes
Any investigation will likely look to ascertain whether Amazon favours merchants that use its own delivery services when allocating buy box access, as well as which sellers are provided access to its fee-paying Prime customers.
While the exact details of the probe are still being worked out, the CMA’s move is the latest in a series of actions by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic to clamp down on the power of the world’s largest tech companies.
Last week, fellow tech giant Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) was rocked by news that it is facing simultaneous investigations in the UK and Europe to see if it is abusing its market position in the way it collects and uses data.
The CMA is looking into whether Facebook has unfairly used the data gained from its advertising and single sign-on to benefit its own services, adding that it will be working closely with the European Commission as it carries out its own probe.
Shares in Amazon were down 0.4% at US$3,281 in pre-market trading in New York.