This photograph taken on June 14, 2023, shows US company Amazon’s group logo on the Vivatech technology startups and innovation fair on the Porte de Versailles exhibition centre in Paris.
Alain Jocard | AFP | Getty Images
Amazon on Wednesday offered commitments to the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority after Britain’s competition watchdog raised concerns in regards to the U.S. e-commerce giant’s treatment of third-party sellers.
The CMA said the remedies offered by Amazon, if accepted, would address its competition concerns as part of an investigation that began just over a 12 months ago.
In July 2022, the CMA opened a probe into Amazon alleging it was abusing its strong market position by giving an unfair advantage to its own retail business and sellers that use its services over third-party merchants on its marketplace.
The CMA on Wednesday said Amazon has offered a number of commitments.
One of those commitments proposes to ensure Amazon doesn’t use rival sellers’ marketplace data to gain an unfair advantage over other sellers. The CMA had raised concerns that Amazon’s access to “commercially sensitive data” relating to third-party sellers could give the e-commerce giant a bonus in deciding which products to sell and the way to set prices.
Amazon’s commitments also proposed to guarantee all product offers are treated equally when the corporate decides which of them shall be featured within the “Buy Box.” That is an area on Amazon’s product pages that offers customers a one-click option to “Buy Now” or “Add to Basket.”
The CMA is anxious that products sold by third-party sellers were less likely to appear within the “Buy Box” than Amazon’s own products.
Amazon offered to allow third-party sellers to negotiate their very own rates directly with providers of Amazon’s Prime delivery service, according to the CMA.
As part of the proposals to the CMA, Amazon shall be required to appoint an independent trustee to monitor the corporate’s compliance with its commitments to the regulator. The CMA could have a “direct say” on this appointment.
“Amazon’s commitments to the CMA will help make sure that third-party sellers on Amazon Marketplace can compete on a level-playing field against Amazon’s own retail business and, ultimately, mean that customers within the UK get a greater deal,” Ann Pope, senior director for enforcement on the CMA, said in a press release.
“We are actually consulting on these commitments which we imagine, at this stage, will address our concerns.”
An Amazon spokesperson said in an announcement that while the corporate disagrees with the CMA’s preliminary concerns, it has “engaged constructively” with the regulator to address the problems it raised.
Amazon’s marketplace practices were also concerning to European Union regulators that were probing similar issues to the U.K. since 2019. In December, Amazon offered similar commitments to the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, to address its concerns.
But scrutiny on Amazon continues to ramp up within the U.S.
On Tuesday, Politico reported that the Federal Trade Commission is finalizing a serious antitrust lawsuit against Amazon in various areas of its business.