Samuel Corum/Pool/AFP
- Sen. Klobuchar said the Justice Department "must conduct a thorough investigation" of Amazon's $8.45 billion MGM deal.
- MGM's extensive film library gives Amazon an edge in the crowded streaming market.
- Republicans are also concerned about the deal. Sen. Hawley said the "sale should not go through."
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota says the US Department of Justice should investigate Amazon's $8.45 billion purchase of MGM over antitrust concerns.
"This is a major acquisition that has the potential to impact millions of consumers," she said Thursday."The Department of Justice must conduct a thorough investigation to ensure that this deal won't risk harming competition."
Spokespersons for both Amazon and the Department of Justice declined to comment.
Klobuchar's call for an investigation comes the day after Amazon announced plans to buy the parent company of MGM Studios, a decades-old studio that is home to some of the world's most popular and beloved films and shows. MGM's extensive library of more than 4,000 films and 17,000 TV shows could give Amazon an edge in its fight to compete with other streaming competitors like Netflix and Disney+.
Concern over Amazon's deal with MGM appears to be a bipartisan issue, with several Republicans also voicing disapproval of the sale due to anticompetitive business concerns.
Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri tweeted on Wednesday that the "sale should not go through. @amazon is already a monopoly platform that owns e-commerce, shipping, grocers & the cloud. They shouldn't be permitted to buy anything else. Period."
Republican Congressman Ken Buck of Colorado shared Sen. Hawley's tweet and added the caption, "Agreed."
-Rep. Ken Buck (@RepKenBuck) May 26, 2021
US lawmakers have focused more intently on Amazon and its big tech peers over antitrust concerns in recent years. Congress questioned Bezos in a July 2020 hearing alongside other tech executives about alleged anticompetitive business practices. Officials were particularly focused on Amazon's treatment of its third-party sellers.
Scrutiny has only mounted on the company since. Washington DC Attorney General Karl Racine said Tuesday that he is suing Amazon, accusing the firm of abusing its monopoly power to control prices of goods online.
Racine said Amazon creates "an artificially high price floor across the online retail marketplace" by requiring its third-party sellers to agree not to offer their products for a lower price on other websites.
Amazon did not respond to Insider's request for comment in light of Racine's lawsuit, but the company told The Verge that "the DC Attorney General has it exactly backwards - sellers set their own prices for the products they offer in our store."