Amazon charged with abusing EU competition rules

The European Commission has charged Amazon with abusing its dominant position in online retail to gain an unfair advantage over competitors.

It said Amazon had used data on third-party sellers that use its marketplace to boost sales of its own-label goods.

The Commission also launched a fresh probe into the possible preferential treatment of sellers that use the tech giant's logistics services.

Amazon rejected the charges, saying no firm "cared more" for small businesses.

It faces a potential fine as high as 10% of its global turnover if it is found guilty of breaching competition law - about £15bn ($19bn).