Alibaba, the billion-dollar Chinese e-commerce company, is likely to deal a crushing blow to American local retailers, experts say, and are urging law makers to pass the Marketplace Fairness Act in order to protect the US small business.

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MOSCOW, December 25 (Sputnik), Ekaterina BlinovaAmerican retailers are beating the drums, urging US congressmen to pass the so-called the Marketplace Fairness Act in order to protect small businesses threatened by online giants like Alibaba.

"Fresh off the largest IPO in Wall Street history and flush with cash, within two years Alibaba and its hundreds of thousands of Chinese retailers will be selling the same goods and products to Americans the same way Amazon does. It's bad enough that local stores have had to compete on a tilted playing field against American e-tailers, but extending this uncompetitive advantage to subsidized overseas giants like Alibaba could spell the end for countless American business owners," writes Dan Schneider, the executive director of the American Conservative Union in his article "Will Congress give Alibaba a green light to crush America's small businesses?" published by Fox News.

For many years online-shop owners have not been paying sales tax in the US, thus they gained a competitive advantage over ordinary American retailers. A longstanding competition between the US small businesses and online giants such as Amazon and eBay has already triggered a heated debate regarding the "fair" commerce issue. However, Alibaba, a Chinese e-commerce company, is likely to overshadow its American online competitors.

"A game changer named Alibaba, a billion-dollar Chinese e-commerce marketplace that's bigger than Amazon and eBay, combined, is now entering the American market," notes Dan Schneider

Mr. Shneider warns that if Alibaba enjoys the same online sales tax loophole, it will deal a crushing blow to American small businesses, since the e-commerce giant will "swallow" their share of market.

"Congress has the power to change this, and the US Senate has already overwhelmingly voted 69-27 to pass the Marketplace Fairness Act to close the online sales tax loophole," the executive director of the American Conservative Union stresses, adding that even Amazon which strongly opposed closing the sales tax loophole, now hails the legislation.

The Market Fairness Act would authorize state governments to collect sales tax from online retailers, or "remote sellers," (no matter where they are located) exactly like they collect it from local retailers.

Slamming American lawmakers for inaction, the US local retailers call upon the House of Representatives to pass the bill. "No more lip service on supporting small-business owners, we need action and we need it now," they claim, according to the Hill.

Everyone including Alibaba should "compete by the same rules," underscores Dan Schneider, claiming that this is "what a free market is all about."