Why hasn't Washington state joined the federal antitrust case against Amazon?

The Federal Trade Commission accused Amazon of operating a monopoly in a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Seattle. Seventeen states joined the complaint, but Washington, where Amazon has its headquarters and employs more than 80,000 people, was conspicuously absent.

Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson said he isn't ruling anything out when it comes to the federal government's antitrust crusade against Amazon.

"We are reviewing the FTC’s complaint and will monitor their litigation," Ferguson said in a statement to KUOW.

Ferguson cited several successful lawsuits his office has brought against the homegrown tech giant, including one that shut down the "Sold by Amazon" third-party pricing program.

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At its core, the FTC lawsuit boils down to the fact that Amazon operates a marketplace and sells goods in that marketplace. Regulators are accusing the company of “biasing Amazon’s search results to preference Amazon’s own products over ones that Amazon knows are of better quality.”

The complaint also says Amazon is abusing its power by only allowing sellers to qualify for its Prime program if they purchase fulfillment services from the company. At a tour of an Amazon fulfillment center in Kent, Washington, on Tuesday, General Manager Julius Yu likened the "Fulfilled by Amazon" program to charging rent to sellers who house products in the company's facilities.

The FTC says sellers are forced to pay Amazon close to 50% of their revenue for these types of services.

In a lengthy statement, Amazon executive David Zapolsky said the FTC lawsuit shows a lack of understanding of retail and antitrust law.

He said the lawsuit would, "if successful, force Amazon to engage in practices that actually harm consumers and the many businesses that sell in our store—such as having to feature higher prices, offer slower or less reliable Prime shipping, and make Prime more expensive and less convenient."

The long-expected lawsuit is FTC Chair Lina Khan's latest attempt to broaden enforcement of antitrust law to apply to the behavior of Big Tech. Khan skyrocketed to prominence in law school when she published "Amazon's Antitrust Paradox," a paper claiming antitrust law should be reexamined to deal with the online economy.

When President Joe Biden appointed Khan to the FTC, Amazon tried unsuccessfully to have her recused.

Like Khan, Ferguson has a proven track record as a thorn in the side of Big Tech. He's pursued cases against Amazon, Google, and Meta during his tenure as state attorney general.

Ferguson is now running to replace Jay Inslee as Washington's governor. It remains to be seen whether he'll take a final swing at Amazon during his tenure as the state's top lawyer.

"While Washington is not joining the lawsuit at this time, we are keeping all options open, including future litigation," Ferguson said.

Amazon is a financial supporter of KUOW programming. The newsroom operates independently of the business department.