Tech CEOs' Hearing Before Congress Postponed

Tech CEOs’ antitrust showdown with Congress will reportedly be postponed

By Trevor Mogg July 23, 2020

Monday’s highly anticipated congressional hearing involving CEOs of some of the biggest names in tech looks like it will be postponed.

Media reports suggest that the decision has been made due to the scheduling of a memorial service for politician and civil rights leader Rep. John Lewis of Georgia, who died last week.

Originally scheduled to begin at noon on Monday, July 27, the House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee will now seek to arrange another date for the hearing that’s convenient for all of the participants, who include Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Apple’s Tim Cook, and Google’s Sundar Pichai.

The event is notable as it marks the first time that the bosses of some of the world’s biggest tech companies will appear together to answer questions about whether their firms are monopolies that leverage their position to crush competitors.

“Since last June, the subcommittee has been investigating the dominance of a small number of digital platforms and the adequacy of existing antitrust laws and enforcement,” House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler and Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David Cicilline said in a recent joint statement published earlier this month. “Given the central role these corporations play in the lives of the American people, it is critical that their CEOs are forthcoming. As we have said from the start, their testimony is essential for us to complete this investigation.”

You can read more about the hearing, and why it matters, here.

Digital Trends has reached out to the committee for confirmation of the reported postponement and we will update this piece when we hear back.

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