Amazon hit with antitrust lawsuit by FTC, 17 states on September 26, 2023 at 4:00 pm Business News | The Hill

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and a bipartisan coalition of 17 state attorneys general sued Amazon over violations of anticompetitive behavior on Tuesday, building on the government’s crackdown on the market power of powerful tech companies. 

The lawsuit targeting Amazon is two-fold — alleging that the e-commerce giant’s practices are anticompetitive in how it serves shoppers as well as third-party sellers on the site, according to an FTC announcement. 

The government alleges that Amazon uses anti-competitive measures that punish sellers and deter other online retailers from offering lower prices than Amazon, which keeps prices higher for consumers across the internet even off Amazon’s platform. 

FTC Chair Lina Khan called it a “one, two punch” which has “internet-wide effects” for consumers and sellers. 

The complaint does not lay out specific remedies the agency is seeking. Khan told reporters Tuesday at this stage the case is focused on seeking judgment from a court that establishes liability. 

In addition to its pricing policies, the FTC targets Amazon’s Prime subscription program by alleging that Amazon conditions seller’s ability to obtain “Prime” eligibility on sellers using Amazon’s fulfillment service. The government alleges that obligation is more expensive for sellers on Amazon to also offer their products on other platforms, and leads to limited competition against Amazon. 

The alleged anti-competitive practices lead to degraded customer service on Amazon, search results that preference Amazon’s own products over rivals, and higher fees to sellers on Amazon, according to the FTC. 

Khan said the “cumulative impact” of Amazon’s conduct is “greater than any particular element.” She said it forms a “feedback loop” in a way that amplifies an overall exclusionary effect. 

A spokesperson for Amazon declined to comment on allegations as reported by Politico and Bloomberg last week, and said the company will respond with a statement and blog post once reading through the complaint. 

The lawsuit is the latest challenge from the FTC against Amazon. In May, the agency filed two lawsuits alleging Amazon violated user privacy, through its Ring security cameras and Alexa smart speakers. Amazon pushed back on the allegations, but settled with the FTC for more than $30 million to settle the two charges. 

In June, the FTC filed a lawsuit alleging the e-commerce giant tricked users into enrolling in its Prime program and prevented them from canceling subscriptions Amazon pushed back on those allegations, as well. 

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​Technology, Business, News, Amazon The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and a bipartisan coalition of 17 state attorneys general sued Amazon over violations of anticompetitive behavior on Tuesday, building on the government’s crackdown on the market power of powerful tech companies. The lawsuit targeting Amazon is two-fold — alleging that the e-commerce giant’s practices are anticompetitive in how it serves…