Small Business Leaders Overwhelmingly Oppose Tech Antitrust Legislation

Washington, DC (June 23, 2022): As U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) urges her colleagues to support legislation attacking large online platforms such as Amazon, Facebook and Google, a new study shows that small businesses oppose efforts to restrict platforms from offering integrated tools and services that save small businesses time and money. In a survey commissioned by the Connected Commerce Council (3C), 87% of small business leaders said they are concerned that tech antitrust proposals like the American Innovation and Choice Online Act (S.2992) will make digital tools more expensive and harder to use. 

“Research shows that small business leaders overwhelmingly oppose laws that would make digital tools and services more costly and more difficult to use,” said Rob Retzlaff, 3C Executive Director. “Small businesses are dealing with inflation, surging gas prices, and a seemingly endless pandemic, yet some in Congress are hellbent on restricting four companies’ growth by forcing them to break apart integrated services that will increase costs for consumers and small businesses, and hinder growth and innovation. It’s no surprise that 9 of 10 small businesses don’t think Congress should be focusing on technology antitrust legislation.”

Platforms like Google and Amazon offer valuable integrated products and services that keep costs low for small businesses and consumers. S.2992 would force these platforms to separate many tools and services that small businesses frequently use together in order to find customers, promote their products and services, and grow. For example, if S.2992 becomes law, someone searching for a restaurant using Google may no longer be able to see results with Google Maps and Google Business Profiles that include the restaurant’s location, hours of operation, menus, and reviews that are easy to find. Similarly, it would prevent Google from integrating free Google Analytics with Google Ads, and block Amazon from integrating Fulfillment-by-Amazon with Amazon Prime. 

“Google and Amazon’s integrated digital tools are critical to my small company’s success,” said Dr. Wei-Shin Lai, CEO of AcousticSheep LLC in Erie, PA. “Having Google Analytics available for free to assess the strengths and weaknesses of my Google Ads is important. And having Fulfillment by Amazon handle shipments to Prime customers makes doing business so much easier. Any Congressional actions that lead to these tools and services breaking apart would cause real problems.”

As S.2992 is designed to forcibly dis-integrate platforms’ integrated products and services, we asked small businesses how they felt.

• 72% oppose a ban on Google Maps appearing in Google search results

• 72% oppose limits on their ability to integrate digital payments with e-commerce services

• 68% oppose limits on the use or integrations of targeted digital advertising

• 67% oppose limits on the use of integrated services with their web store 

• 62% oppose a requirement that Amazon separate warehousing, shipping, product promotion and customer support services (Fulfillment-by-Amazon) from Amazon Prime 

• 62% oppose a ban on AmazonBasics products in the Amazon.com marketplace

• 54% oppose a requirement that Google separate advertising and advertising analytics products