Washington, D.C. — In response to news that Senator Amy Klobuchar has introduced the “Preventing Algorithmic Collusion Act of 2024,” a bill aimed at reining in anticompetitive pricing algorithms that rip off consumers across the country, the American Economic Liberties Project released the following statement.

“In today’s rapidly-evolving digital economy, algorithmic price setting software presents a new threat to consumers, independent businesses, and workers by making it easier for companies to engage in illegal price fixing and price discrimination,” said Morgan Harper, Director of Policy and Advocacy at the American Economic Liberties Project. “When software can facilitate illegal agreements between competitors, existing laws that prevent illegal price and wage fixing become much more difficult to enforce. This bill addresses that blind spot by focusing on the actual data being used to facilitate violations of the law. While there’s more work to be done, Senator Klobuchar’s bill starts an important conversation to ensure that companies cannot circumvent the law with these anticompetitive tactics.”

Learn more about Economic Liberties here.

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The American Economic Liberties Project works to ensure America’s system of commerce is structured to advance, rather than undermine, economic liberty, fair commerce, and a secure, inclusive democracy. Economic Liberties believes true economic liberty means entrepreneurs and businesses large and small succeed on the merits of their ideas and hard work; commerce empowers consumers, workers, farmers, and engineers instead of subjecting them to discrimination and abuse from financiers and monopolists; foreign trade arrangements support domestic security and democracy; and wealth is broadly distributed to support equitable political power.