Technology

Apple, Google, Dropbox Face Italy Antitrust Probes

Italy’s competition authority is looking into the companies’ cloud storage services after complaints about allegedly unfair commercial practices.
Lauren MuskettSeptember 8, 2020

Italy’s antitrust authorities said Monday that they are opening six investigations against global operators of cloud computing services, such as Alphabet subsidiary Google, Apple, and Dropbox.

What Happened: Italy’s competition authority, Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato, in a statement said it was looking into alleged unfair commercial practices by the companies.

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The Italian competition body said it is looking into allegations that the companies failed to show how their services collect and use consumer data for commercial purposes.

Why It Matters: Multiple technology companies from the United States are facing wider investigations in the European Union.

The EU authorities are probing Facebook over antitrust concerns, which the Mark Zuckerberg-led company says is interfering with its employees’ privacy.

Google told the EU in July it would not use Fitbit data for targeting ads in a bid to secure approval for a deal to acquire the health wearables firm.

The U.S. Department of Justice may bring an antitrust case against Google as early as this month to look in the company’s clout in search, video streaming, and other areas, according to the New York Times.

Price Action: Alphabet Class A shares closed nearly 3% lower at $1,581.21, and Class C shares closed almost 3.10% lower at $1,591.04 on Friday.

Apple shares were mostly unchanged at $120.96 on the same day, while Dropbox shares closed nearly 4% lower at $19.75.

This story originally appeared on Benzinga.

© 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

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