Skip to main content

You make this possible. Support our independent, nonprofit newsroom today.

Give Now

Is Amazon really skirting antitrust law?

caption: Standard Oil depicted as an octopus, parodying its status as a monopoly.
Enlarge Icon
Standard Oil depicted as an octopus, parodying its status as a monopoly.
Public Domain

In 1890, the Sherman Act was passed. Its purpose was to preserve a competitive marketplace against potential consumer abuses.

But the law isn't supposed to punish "innocent monopoly," or monopoly achieved by merit alone. So the question is: how innocent is Amazon’s monopoly?

Seattle University Law professor and antitrust expert Jack Kirkwood explains.

Why you can trust KUOW