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FTC lawsuit alleges Amazon has been ‘secretly and systematically’ overcharging for ads

FTC lawsuit alleges Amazon has been ‘secretly and systematically’ overcharging for ads
The Verge Monday 31 August 2026, 21:41 UTC By Stevie Bonifield 1 min read
Key Points

The FTC and 22 state attorneys general are suing Amazon for allegedly using a "secret ad surcharge" to drive up prices for ads on its website and app. FTC chairman Andrew Ferguson claims in a blog post on the lawsuit that the higher advertising prices "were largely passed on to American consumers." According to the complaint, Amazon violated the FTC Act and over a dozen state laws.

The FTC and 22 state attorneys general are suing Amazon for allegedly using a "secret ad surcharge" to drive up prices for ads on its website and app. FTC chairman Andrew Ferguson claims in a blog post on the lawsuit that the higher advertising prices "were largely passed on to American consumers." According to the complaint, Amazon violated the FTC Act and over a dozen state laws. This lawsuit comes almost a year after Amazon agreed to pay $2.5 billion to settle an earlier FTC lawsuit over Prime subscription practices.

In Amazon's "second price" auctions for ads on its platform, the winning bidder is supposed to only pay one cent more tha …

Read the full story at The Verge.

FTC (ORG) Amazon (ORG) Andrew Ferguson (PERSON) American (ORG)
Originally published by The Verge Read original →

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