The FTC’s Amazon complaint and ongoing criticism of FTC Chair Lina Khan, understanding Amazon’s power and the limits of antitrust law, modern regulators vs. the Chicago school, and why “big is bad” might be a good strategy.

To email the show: email@sharptech.fm

Khan Seeks to End Amazon ‘Illegal Conduct,’ Quiet on Breakup — Bloomberg

Lina Khan Once Went Big Against Amazon. As FTC Chair, She Changed Tack. — Wall Street Journal

Amazon’s Antitrust Paradox — The Yale Law Journal

Lina Khan Has a Weak Case Against Amazon — Wall Street Journal

Market share of leading retail e-commerce companies in the United States as of June 2022 — Statista

Is William Baxter Anti-Antitrust? — New York Times

Beyond Aggregation: Amazon as a Service — Stratechery

FTC Sues Amazon, FBA and Prime, Pricing Punishment — Stratechery Update

Fulfillment: A Conversation on Amazon and Regional Inequality with Alec MacGillis — American Compass

Antitrust and Aggregation — Stratechery

Get Sharp Tech Premium, Sharp China, Stratechery Update, Stratechery Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $12/month.

(Preview) Amazon and the FTC, Antitrust Laws and Big Tech, Consumer Welfare and American Welfare 17:23 Share

Sharp Tech with Ben Thompson

Shownotes Transcript

(Preview) Amazon and the FTC, Antitrust Laws and Big Tech, Consumer Welfare and American Welfare