U.S. Big Tech antitrust legislation flounders as Schumer expresses doubts

Antitrust legislation aimed at “Big Tech” companies appears stymied after U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told a group of donors Tuesday evening that he doesn’t believe there are enough votes to pass the measure.
The United States Capitol Building
The Senate doesn’t have the 60 votes needed to approve it, Schumer reportedly told people who attended a fundraiser for Schumer’s political action committee, at a restaurant near Capitol Hill.
Emily Birnbaum for Bloomberg News:

Schumer had previously affirmed that he was working with the legislation’s lead Democratic sponsor in the Senate, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, but he hadn’t said publicly that he thinks the bill’s prospects are dim. He had earlier pledged to bring the legislation to a vote early this summer.
The bill would prevent Apple. Inc., Alphabet Inc.’s Google, Meta Platforms, Inc. and Amazon from using their gatekeeper power to discriminate against rivals.
The legislation now faces an extremely narrow window when the Senate returns in September with other priorities pushing ahead of the closely watched measure.
Schumer at a press conference earlier Tuesday said the Senate’s priorities ahead of the August recess are semiconductor legislation, budget reconciliation and a bill to address healthcare for veterans. He didn’t include the tech antitrust bill.

MacDailyNews Take: As we wrote on Tuesday, describing the prospects of these Senate and House bills passing as tenuous (“if the bills ever come up for vote, much less become law”):
No one is forced to use an iPhone.
Apple does not have a monopoly position in smartphones. Therefore, Apple should not be subject to so-called antitrust laws.
Mobile Operating System Market Share Worldwide (StatCounter, June 2022):
• Android: 72.12%
• iOS: 27.22%
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