PRESS STATEMENT - 04.05.2017

Today the European Commission accepted the commitments of Amazon in its e-books antitrust case.

Monique Goyens, Director General of The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC), commented:

“The conditions that Amazon imposed on its suppliers in the form of parity clauses risked hampering competition and harming consumers in the e-book market. We welcome Amazon’s commitment to refrain from using these clauses in its contracts with publishers.

“Today’s decision should have a spill-over effect on the entire platform industry. Contract clauses should not be used to impede a supplier or competitor from offering better deals to consumers outside the dominant platform.

“Consumers should be the primary consideration of EU competition policy in the digital single market. When companies use their market power to define the rules of the game for the entire market, it is not only competitors who suffer but also consumers because they are unable to find better deals.”