Bust Up Big Tech Act
Bill: S.1204 | Sponsor: Sen. Hawley, Josh (R-MO)
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications

Summary:
Bust Up Big Tech Act
This bill prohibits large online platforms in the business of offering search engines, marketplaces, or exchanges from selling, advertising, or otherwise promoting their own goods and services on their websites. The bill also prohibits such online platforms from providing online hosting services or back-end online services to any other entity that is not owned by the platform. Such platforms are those with more than $1.5 billion in global revenue during the most recent tax year and over 30 million U.S. users or 300 million worldwide users

To promote competition in digital markets, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Bust Up Big Tech Act''.

SEC. 2. STRUCTURAL SEPARATION REQUIREMENTS FOR TECHNOLOGY PLATFORMS.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Back-end online services.--The term ``back-end online 
        services'' means third-party internet infrastructure services, 
        including domain name resolution services, DDoS and other cyber 
        threat mitigation services, content delivery networks and other 
        load management techniques, and internet backbone networks.
            (2) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Federal 
        Trade Commission.
            (3) Covered person.--The term ``covered person''--
                    (A) means a person that is in the business of 
                offering an online platform to connect third parties to 
                an online marketplace, exchange, or search engine 
                which--
                            (i) in any month during the most recently 
                        completed 12-month period--
                                    (I) more than 30,000,000 users in 
                                the United States accessed, without 
                                regard to the means by which the users 
                                accessed the service; or
                                    (II) more than 300,000,000 users 
                                worldwide accessed, without regard to 
                                the means by which the users accessed 
                                the service; and
                            (ii) during the most recently completed 
                        taxable year, had more than $1,500,000,000 in 
                        global revenue; and
                    (B) does not include an organization described in 
                section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
                that is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of 
                such Code.
            (4) Online hosting.--The term ``online hosting'' means a 
        service or set of services that provide processing, storage, or 
        other computational resources that are used to implement any or 
        all functions of any public or private internet-based services 
        administered by third parties.
            (5) Online platform.--The term ``online platform'' means 
        any publicly accessible online electronic medium that enables 1 
        or more users to view, generate, or modify content that can be 
        viewed, shared, or otherwise interacted with by other third-
        party users of the medium.
    (b) Prohibitions.--
            (1) Online sales platform.--
                    (A) In general.--A covered person may not sell, 
                advertise, or otherwise promote goods and services of 
                the covered person on an online platform owned or 
                operated by the covered company.
                    (B) Targeted prohibition on affiliates.--Not later 
                than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, 
                any affiliation, common ownership, or control by a 
                covered person of an entity that operates, sells, or 
                advertises goods and services on the online platform of 
                the covered person shall be terminated or otherwise 
                liquidated.
                    (C) Targeted prohibition on acquisitions.--A 
                covered person shall not acquire or hold a controlling 
                interest in any entity that would sell, advertise, or 
                otherwise promote goods and services on an online 
                platform owned or operated by the covered person.
            (2) Online hosting and back-end online services.--
                    (A) In general.--A covered person may not provide 
                online hosting services or back-end online services to 
                any other entity that is not owned by the covered 
                person.
                    (B) Targeted prohibition on affiliates.--Not later 
                than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, 
                any affiliation, common ownership, or control by a 
                covered person of an entity that provides online 
                hosting or back-end online services to another entity 
                not owned by the covered company shall be terminated or 
                otherwise liquidated.
                    (C) Targeted prohibition on acquisitions.--A 
                covered person may not acquire or hold a controlling 
                interest in any entity that provides online hosting or 
                back-end online services not owned by the covered 
                company.
            (3) Exception.--Paragraphs (1) and (2) shall not apply to 
        the operation of an online platform for any person that 
        exclusively sells, advertises, or otherwise promotes the goods 
        and services of the person.
    (c) Authority of the Commission.--The Commission may--
            (1) hire sufficient staff (whether on a part-time, full-
        time, or contract basis) to monitor compliance with subsection 
        (b); and
            (2) design and supervise annual audits for each covered 
        person to ensure compliance with this Act and the amendments 
        made by this Act.
    (d) Enforcement by State Attorneys General.--
            (1) In general.--In any case in which the attorney general 
        of a State has reason to believe that an interest of the 
        residents of that State has been or is threatened or adversely 
        affected by the engagement of any entity in a practice that 
        violates subsection (b), the State, as parens patriae, may 
        bring a civil action on behalf of the residents of the State in 
        a district court of the United States or a State court of 
        appropriate jurisdiction to--
                    (A) enjoin that practice;
                    (B) enforce compliance with such section;
                    (C) on behalf of residents of the State, obtain 
                damages, statutory damages, restitution, or other 
                compensation, each of which shall be distributed in 
                accordance with State law; or
                    (D) obtain such other relief as the court may 
                consider to be appropriate.
            (2) Requirement.--Before filing an action under paragraph 
        (1), the attorney general of the State involved shall submit to 
        the Commission--
                    (A) written notice of that action; and
                    (B) a copy of the complaint for that action.
    (e) Private Right of Action.--
            (1) In general.--Any person who suffers an injury as a 
        result of an act or practice of a covered person in violation 
        of subsection (b) may bring a civil action against the covered 
        person in any court of competent jurisdiction.
            (2) Relief.--In a civil action under paragraph (1) in which 
        the plaintiff prevails, the court may award the plaintiff not 
        more than $1,000,000 per each violation per plaintiff.
                                 <all>