Is Amazon trying to "fix" prices?

DebraMae

DebraMae

Progressive Crone
Location
Oklahoma
Per AI: Based on a 2026 California antitrust lawsuit, Amazon has been accused of pressuring Walmart, Target, and other retailers to increase prices on their own websites to avoid undercutting Amazon. While not a traditional partnership to raise prices, evidence suggests a coercive, anti-competitive scheme where Amazon used its market power to force vendors and retailers to align with its pricing, according to the lawsuit.
 
DebraMae said:
Per AI: Based on a 2026 California antitrust lawsuit, Amazon has been accused of pressuring Walmart, Target, and other retailers to increase prices on their own websites to avoid undercutting Amazon. While not a traditional partnership to raise prices, evidence suggests a coercive, anti-competitive scheme where Amazon used its market power to force vendors and retailers to align with its pricing, according to the lawsuit.
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For clarity - Amazon is accused of pressuring vendors who sell across multiple sites, into increasing their price on competitors websites.
 
Off topic, but @Nathan, thank you for your tag line, "Californians never say Cali!" It's so true. We may refer to Northern California and Southern California as Nor Cal and So Cal, but never, ever do we say Cali!!! Nor do we refer to San Francisco as Frisco (San Franciscans bristle at that nickname).
 
DebraMae said:
I thought I had made that pretty clear.
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Not for me. I took from what you posted that WALMART was being pressured. This is not, as far as I can see, accurate. It's the vendors who SUPPLY Walmart that are being pressured. ;)

Amazon has no mechanism to pressure Walmart as a company. They do have measures that can pressurize vendors who want to sell on both platforms.
 
VaughanJB said:
For clarity - Amazon is accused of pressuring vendors who sell across multiple sites, into increasing their price on competitors websites.
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I understand what you are saying, but the quote I posted stated vendors as well as well as retailers. Thanks for the explanation of how you understood it.

What do you think are the chances of Amazon being found guilty of price fixing?
 
DebraMae said:
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What do you think are the chances of Amazon being found guilty of price fixing?
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That's what it is a form of price fixing but the loophole will be it was done through vendors.

If the exact same vendors supply all mentioned that sounds like an 'anticompetitive practice'. Sometimes the same item is sold as different brands with different companies.Sometimes the only difference being the label but others have actual minor differences so they don't get accused of selling someone else's product.
 
WhatInThe said:
That's what it is a form of price fixing but the loophole will be it was done through vendors.

If the exact same vendors supply all mentioned that sounds like an 'anticompetitive practice'. Sometimes the same item is sold as different brands with different companies.Sometimes the only difference being the label but others have actual minor differences so they don't get accused of selling someone else's product.
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So, it sounds like you are saying that the terms "price fixing" and "anticompetitive practice" are two different things legally. It is frustrating.
 
I only used Amazon once, years ago. I gave an honest bad review of my product and service and they didn't like it. Gave me a really hard time about not changing my review then barred me. I also noticed that when I looked at a product and came back after searching around, the price goes up. I'll do without than ever use them again.
 
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StarSong said:
Off topic, but @Nathan, thank you for your tag line, "Californians never say Cali!" It's so true. We may refer to Northern California and Southern California as Nor Cal and So Cal, but never, ever do we say Cali!!! Nor do we refer to San Francisco as Frisco (San Franciscans bristle at that nickname).
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I haven't heard "Frisco" said in a long time. Back in the 60s-70s a lot of people talked about the cultural goings on in SF, and Frisco was used frequently in entertainment.
 
DebraMae said:
I understand what you are saying, but the quote I posted stated vendors as well as well as retailers. Thanks for the explanation of how you understood it.

What do you think are the chances of Amazon being found guilty of price fixing?
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To be completely honest - I don't think it matters what the outcome is. Amazon's annual revenue is $716bn. At worse they'll get a fine - which will seem like a lot of money to us, but to them is a tickle on the foot - and told not to do it again. They will then have lawyers study any new rules and regulations, and work out a way to circumvent them once more.

These companies are too big to be hurt at this point. It's right that we should hold them to account in some way, but at the end of the day they're too big to be damaged by laws put in place by the people they're giving funds too in Congress.
 
VaughanJB said:
To be completely honest - I don't think it matters what the outcome is. Amazon's annual revenue is $716bn. At worse they'll get a fine - which will seem like a lot of money to us, but to them is a tickle on the foot - and told not to do it again. They will then have lawyers study any new rules and regulations, and work out a way to circumvent them once more.

These companies are too big to be hurt at this point. It's right that we should hold them to account in some way, but at the end of the day they're too big to be damaged by laws put in place by the people they're giving funds too in Congress.
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The only way to hurt Amazon is for them lose all of their customers, and there's too many willing sheep for that to happen.
 
Oldeagle66 said:
The only way to hurt Amazon is for them lose all of their customers, and there's too many willing sheep for that to happen.
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Amazon offers convenience, decent prices most of the time, and shipping that circumvents the rubbish alternatives.

This comes at a cost, of course. We know the ills of Amazon. But the above means they get away with it.

Same with AI companies that are causing air pollution and is drastically pushing up bills for locals. They'll never have to pay for it, only profit.
 
VaughanJB said:
Amazon offers convenience, decent prices most of the time, and shipping that circumvents the rubbish alternatives.

This comes at a cost, of course. We know the ills of Amazon. But the above means they get away with it.

Same with AI companies that are causing air pollution and is drastically pushing up bills for locals. They'll never have to pay for it, only profit.
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That's true but, fortunately my area is one of the few turning down those data centers and even limited the number of Amazon fulfillment centers. I myself will never use them.
 
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