Prompts on how to use Amazon's Alexa personal assistant are seen in an Amazon ‘experience centre’ in Vallejo, California, U.S., May 8, 2018.

Top U.S. senator fears Big Tech at home as Alexa, Nest dominate

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2021-06-16 12:00:18

Prompts on how to use Amazon's Alexa personal assistant are seen in an Amazon ‘experience centre’ in Vallejo, California, U.S., May 8, 2018. Picture taken May 8, 2018. REUTERS/Elijah Nouvelage/File Photo

WASHINGTON, June 15 (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers from both parties pressed Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) Google and Amazon.com (AMZN.O) on Tuesday about their smart speakers markets, amid concern over the domination of the tech behemoths in this area.

Senator Amy Klobuchar, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee's antitrust subcommittee, noted that Amazon had more than 50% of the smart speaker market while Google had 30%, and stressed the importance of interoperability.

"In a few years, people might easily have 20 or more connected devices in their homes – from a vacuum and a fridge to speakers and lights. We want those devices to work with each other seamlessly," she said. "You shouldn't have to choose the right devices for your home based on whether they play nicely with Google or Amazon's digital assistants."

Google Senior Public Policy Director Wilson White said interoperability was a goal and there were "robust conversations" underway on how to achieve it.