Articles by Diane Bartz

Amazon Asks Judge to Dismiss FTC Lawsuit, Says No Consumer Harm Shown

Amazon.com asked a federal court on Friday to dismiss a U.S. government antitrust lawsuit which accuses the company of using illegal strategies to boost profits at its online retail empire, including an algorithm that allegedly pushed up prices by more …

Meta Asks Appeals Court to Tell FTC it Cannot Reopen Privacy Case

Meta Platforms, which owns WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook, filed a lawsuit asking an appeals court to stop the U.S. Federal Trade Commission from unilaterally re-opening a consent agreement and ordering the social media giant to stop collecting revenue on data …

US, Britain, Other Countries Ink Agreement to Make AI ‘Secure by Design’

The United States, Britain and more than a dozen other countries on Sunday unveiled what a senior U.S. official described as the first detailed international agreement on how to keep artificial intelligence safe from rogue actors, pushing for companies to …

New FTC Court Filing: Amazon Made $1B Through Secret Price Algorithm

Amazon.com used a series of illegal strategies to boost profits at its online retail empire, including an algorithm that pushed up prices U.S. households paid by more than $1 billion, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission detailed in a new court …

Meta’s Instagram Linked to Depression, Anxiety, Insomnia in Kids: States’ Lawsuit

Dozens of U.S. states are suing Meta Platforms and its Instagram unit, accusing them of fueling a youth mental health crisis by making their social media platforms addictive. In a complaint filed on Tuesday, the attorneys general of 33 states …

Microsoft CEO Says Tech Giants Battling for Content to Build AI

Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella said Monday tech giants were competing for vast troves of content needed to train artificial intelligence, and complained Google was locking up content with expensive and exclusive deals with publishers. Testifying in a landmark U.S. …

Update: FTC Sues Amazon.com for Breaking Antitrust Law and Harming Consumers

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission filed a long-awaited antitrust lawsuit against Amazon.com on Tuesday and asked the court to consider forcing the online retailer to sell assets as the government accuses Big Tech of monopolizing the most lucrative parts of …

Judge Allows Key Antitrust Google Search Claims to Go to Trial

A U.S. judge hearing the Justice Department’s antitrust lawsuit accusing Google of unlawfully maintaining monopolies in the internet search market let stand key claims made by the federal government. Google, a unit of Alphabet, had asked for summary judgment on …

FTC Opens Investigation Into OpenAI Over Misleading Statements

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has opened an investigation into OpenAI on claims it has run afoul of consumer protection laws by putting personal reputations and data at risk, the strongest regulatory threat to the Microsoft-backed startup yet. The FTC …

‘Stoneos’ Cannabis Cookies Look Too Much Like Oreos, Says FTC

Six companies that make snacks with the active ingredient of cannabis have been sent cease and desist letters because the packaging looks too much like foods that kids love, including “Stoneos” that mimic Oreo cookies, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission …