Dive Brief:

• The European Commission, an executive arm of the European Union, is investigating Amazon’s e-book business over anti-trust issues.

• Clauses in Amazon’s publishing contracts have caught the eye of EC regulators, who say that Amazon’s requirement that publishers reveal terms they’re offering to other retailers could be a restrictive business practice.

• The move Thursday is added to the EC’s ongoing investigation into Amazon’s European tax payments — the e-retail giant pays in Luxembourg to take advantage of low rates.

Dive Insight:

Amazon was founded on its long-running disruption-based way of doing business in bookselling, but these days bookselling almost seems like the bane of its existence. Publishers are beginning to push back in the face of the e-retail giant’s hardball tactics, and now the European Commission is scrutinizing its business practices and tax payments. 

It all shows that yesterday’s disruptive startup could grow into a behemoth that needs to be watched. 

“Amazon has developed a successful business that offers consumers a comprehensive service, including for e-books,” EC competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager said in a statement. “Our investigation does not call that into question. However, it is my duty to make sure that Amazon’s arrangements with publishers are not harmful to consumers, by preventing other e-book distributors from innovating and competing effectively with Amazon.”