China fines 22 internet giants in anti-monopoly cases

China’s State Administration for Market Regulation announced that they have fined 22 internet companies for their roles in anti-monopoly cases, the Associated Press reported on Wednesday. 

Twenty-two companies including six owned the Alibaba Group, five by Tencent Holding Ltd. and two by retailer Suning.com, Ltd. were fined 500,000 yuan ($75,000) for acquiring stakes in other companies that could increase their market value. 

The Chinese government was worried about tech companies expanding their resources “into finance, health services, and other sensitive areas,” according to the AP. 

This comes as Alibaba was hit with a 18.3 billion yuan ($2.8 billion) fine in April for charges of suppressing competition. 

Other companies have also been fined or have been reprimanded for violating rules such as competition, data protection, and censorship, the AP reported. 

China’s Communist Party has made it a priority to enforce anti-monopoly rules in 2021, the AP noted.