US court dismisses antitrust lawsuit against Amazon

It is understood that in May last year, Washington, D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine filed a lawsuit against Amazon on behalf of the District of Columbia , claiming that the company had excessive control over the prices of its suppliers' products , driving up prices.

But according to the Wall Street Journal, on Friday, a judge at the U.S. District of Columbia Superior Court approved Amazon's motion to dismiss. The report said the court did not have relevant evidence to prove that Amazon caused price increases.

In a previous lawsuit filed by the relevant departments of Seattle against Amazon, it was mentioned that Amazon sellers are under great pressure to offer low prices . This is because if Amazon sellers sell products at low prices on other platforms, they will face "penalties."

According to reports, the "punishment" of sellers mentioned in the lawsuit mainly refers to the fact that if third-party sellers sell products on other platforms at lower prices than on Amazon, Amazon may take measures such as removing the seller 's products from the Buy Box, suspending shipping options, and terminating sales privileges .

It is worth noting that the Buy Box plays a big role in consumer purchasing behavior, with more than 90% of purchases occurring in the Buy Box . If a seller’s product is removed from the Buy Box , the impact on the seller will undoubtedly be huge.

The lawsuit also mentioned that sellers who accept FBA services will increase the possibility of their products being selected into Amazon's Buy Box. At the same time, sellers joining FBA is a good thing for Amazon . Although Amazon does not own the inventory of third-party sellers, it enjoys stable income from sellers and is responsible for all product sales and bears inventory risks.

In addition, the seller's reputation, selling price , efficiency , etc. are all important factors that affect the assessment of the seller's relevant qualifications.

In recent years, Amazon has been facing an increasing number of antitrust lawsuits, not only in the United States, but also in India and Europe. Earlier this year , Amazon also paid relevant compensation for suspected price manipulation on the platform and closed the sales hosting program.

Amazon

Antitrust