Congressmen Urge Antitrust Scrutiny of Zillow

“While the consumer experience might benefit from certain technological innovations in the real estate industry, antitrust enforcers should be vigilant to ensure that a competitive environment is maintained and the online real estate industry does not become overly consolidated in the hands of a dominant platform to the detriment of competition and consumers,” reads a letter from Rep. Ken Buck of Col. and Sen. Mike Lee of Utah. They want the FTC to pay particular attention to Zillow Group’s pending acquisition of ShowingTime. The letter highlights the growing antitrust scrutiny on tech giants in various industries and is the latest antitrust-related criticism facing Zillow. In February, Zillow announced that it will acquire Showing Time for $500 million. ShowingTime sells software to facilitate home showings. According to the congressmen, the deal, which is still pending, “may further entrench Zillow’s consumer information advantage to the detriment of homebuyers and their competitors.” Earlier this year Zillow was hit with an antitrust lawsuit filed by real estate startup Real Estate Exchange. It accused Zillow of anticompetitive behavior related to how some homes are shown on its platform.