Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg also received a series of tough questions, particularly over Facebook’s tight control over information posted to the platform, a prime example being widely shared articles on hydroxychloroquine, a hotly contested potential treatment for COVID-19.
While Amazon, Google, and Apple’s CEOs offered lukewarm responses on the question of Chinese corporate espionage, Zuckerberg confirmed that it is indeed a reality.
Amazon’s Jeff Bezos largely remained unscathed until later on in the hearing when he was questioned on unfair manipulation of the Amazon platform to access seller data to create competing products.
“We have a policy against using seller specific data to aid our private label business,” Bezos said, “But I can’t guarantee to you that that policy hasn’t been violated.”
Lawmakers also posed the question to Pichai, who flatly denied the allegations that Google has unfairly targeted competitors.
Apple’s Tim Cook was questioned on the company’s ties to China as well as unfair practices in Apple’s app store. It is insinuated that Apple’s app store unfairly targeted certain app developers, stole their ideas, and removed them off the platform altogether. Cook successfully parried the questions with tact and aplomb.
