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Amazon Hit with FTC Lawsuit Over Alleged Ad Price Manipulation
The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has sued Amazon.com, with over 20 US states joining the lawsuit. The FTC alleges that Amazon manipulated prices for advertisements on its e-retail platform, deceiving advertisers by secretly raising the minimum price they had to pay to place ads promoting their products.
The Wall Street Journal reported earlier in the day, citing FTC officials, that the agency planned to file a lawsuit. According to the report, advertisers allegedly suffered billions of dollars in harm from higher ad prices.
The e-commerce giant Amazon agreed to pay $2.5 billion in fines and reimbursements to Prime subscribers last September to settle the FTC's allegations that it deceived its customers to generate subscriptions.