The Utah Insurance Department is reportedly demanding insurance startup Zenefits to raise prices, claiming the company’s business model violates competition rules.
The UID reportedly sent a letter to Zenefits on November 20 in which Insurance Commissioner Todd Kiser challenged Zenefits’s practice of giving its software away for free. The UID had been investigating Zenefits since June and released its findings several weeks ago, but the letter was only recently made public, say reports.
Zenefits allows human resources departments to use its software to manage the benefits of company employees. While the software is given away for free, Zenefits profits from commissions generated as an insurance broker.
But Utah insurance officials say this practice violates antitrust rules and that the company should have to charge a “fair market value” for its services. Giving away the software for free, the sate says, undermines competition for other insurance licensees.
The company is now being ordered to pay up to $97,000 if it fails to change its business practices.
Full content: Tech Crunch
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.
Featured News
Redfin Settles $9.2M Commission Inflation Lawsuits
May 7, 2024 by
CPI
DOJ Supports Colorado’s Efforts to Block Kroger-Albertsons Merger
May 7, 2024 by
CPI
Japan Considers Regulation of AI Developers
May 7, 2024 by
CPI
European Commission Extends Decision Deadline for Ita-Lufthansa Merger
May 7, 2024 by
CPI
UK, US and Australia Sanction Senior Leader of LockBit Cybercrime Gang
May 7, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – Economics of Criminal Antitrust
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Navigating Economic Expert Work in Criminal Antitrust Litigation
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
The Increased Importance of Economics in Cartel Cases
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
A Law and Economics Analysis of the Antitrust Treatment of Physician Collective Price Agreements
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Information Exchange In Criminal Antitrust Cases: How Economic Testimony Can Tip The Scales
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI