U.S. lawmakers are turning up the heat on the tech industry.

The House Judiciary Committee on Monday opened an investigation to look into potential anticompetitive behavior by the companies that dominate the web. Rep. David Cicilline (D-Rhode Island), who heads the panel’s antitrust subcommittee, singled out Google LLC, Facebook Inc. Amazon.com Inc. and Apple Inc. in a media briefing.

“The growth of monopoly power across our economy is one of the most pressing economic and political challenges we face today,” Cicilline said in a statement. “Market power in digital markets presents a whole new set of dangers.”

To support its investigation, the House Judiciary plans to seek testimony from tech industry executives, hold hearings and gather relevant documents. The panel will also launch an evaluation of antitrust policies in a bid to identify areas for improvement, as well as to determine how effectively regulations are being enforced vis-a-vis the tech industry.

The investigation is kicking off as the agencies in charge of enforcement are said to be preparing to step up their scrutiny of the sector. On Monday, multiple publications reported that the Federal Communications Commission and the Justice Department have struck an agreement to divvy up oversight of major tech firms. The FTC will receive jurisdiction over Amazon and Facebook, while the Justice Department will have authority to investigate Apple and Google.

The search giant may be one of the first to find itself in regulators’ crosshairs. On Friday, the Wall Street Journal cited anonymous sources as saying that Justice Department officials are preparing to launch an antitrust  investigation into Google. Facebook, meanwhile, is expected to receive a multibillion-dollar fine from the FTC over its handling of the Cambridge Analytica privacy scandal.

U.S. tech companies are facing increased scrutiny abroad as well. The European Union is reportedly gearing up to launch a probe into Apple’s App Store rules and has slapped other tech companies, most notably Google, with billions of dollars in fines in recent years over competition law violations.

Photo: Unsplash