US: House panel asks Apple, Facebook, Amazon, Google for emails

A US House of Representatives panel on Friday, September 13, demanded internal emails, detailed financial information, and other company records from top executives of Amazon.com, Facebook, Apple, and Alphabet’s Google, reported The Wall Street Journal. 

Among other requests, the committee asked the firms to provide by October 14 reams of documents, including executive communications and financial statements as well as information about competitors, market share, mergers, and key business decisions.

The dozens of executives named in the requests include Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Apple CEO Tim Cook, and Google’s early leaders Larry Page, Sergey Brin, and Eric Schmidt.

The companies are likely to resist such carte blanche access, which could set in motion negotiations with the House committee over the scope of materials provided, said William Kovacic, former chair of the Federal Trade Commission.

The House committee isn’t subpoenaing the records, though it has the authority to do so—a fact that gives lawmakers a stick they can use in negotiations over access.

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