#European Union plans antitrust charges against Amazon: report

The European Union is planning to file antitrust charges against Amazon for its habit of copying third-party products, according to a new report.

The charges against the ecommerce juggernaut could arrive as soon as next week and are the latest step in a two-year investigation into Amazon’s practices, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The European Commission, the bloc’s top antitrust regulator, has been probing allegations that Amazon uses data it collects from third-party sellers to identify top-selling products which it can copy and sell under a competing house brand. Amazon has denied that it abuses its platform to create a competitive advantage for its own products.

Shares of the $1.3 trillion company were down 0.6 percent Thursday morning, at $2,631.50.

A representative for Amazon did not respond to a request for comment.