FTC monopolization lawsuit against Amazon gets 2026 trial date

Update: 

• A Washington federal judge scheduled a bench trial for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)’s monopolization claims against Amazon for early October 2026.
• The judge directed Amazon and the FTC to complete fact discovery by August 2025 and gave them until the end of February to file a motion to bifurcate the trial. 
• The FTC, along with 17 state attorneys general, claim Amazon monopolized the online retail sales market by using a covert algorithm to manipulate other online retailers into raising their prices. 
• Amazon argues the lawsuit targets policies that exist to promptly match competitor prices.

Amazon lawsuit overview:

• Who: The FTC and 17 state attorneys general have filed an antitrust lawsuit against Amazon.com Inc.
• Why: Amazon allegedly utilized a covert algorithm that manipulated other online retailers into raising their prices, causing shoppers to pay inflated prices.
• Where: The Amazon algorithm lawsuit was filed in Washington federal court.

(Nov. 8, 2023)

The Federal Trade Commission and 17 states filed an Amazon lawsuit on Nov. 2, alleging the online retail behemoth is a “monopolist” that has manipulated other stores’ pricing algorithms to raise its prices, causing consumers to pay inflated prices, Law360 reports.

The Amazon lawsuit explains the retailer uses a “covert operation” dubbed “Project Nessie,” which is allegedly designed to increase the prices that consumers pay for products.

“Amazon’s Project Nessie has already extracted over a billion dollars from American households,” the lawsuit says, not including inflated prices that the Amazon algorithm likely caused shoppers to pay at other online stores.

Project Nessie was reportedly used between 2015 and 2019, although the Amazon algorithm was paused during Prime Day and the holiday shopping season when the retailer may have been subject to extra scrutiny.

Amazon lawsuit says retail giant ‘punishes’ sellers who offer products cheaper at other online stores

The FTC and state plaintiffs allege that Amazon takes nearly half of every dollar from typical sellers who use its fulfillment service, making it more difficult for sellers to be profitable from selling on Amazon. 

However, due to Amazon’s monopolistic presence in the online retail market, one seller complained that “we have nowhere else to go and Amazon knows it,” according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit claims the company punishes sellers who offer lower prices elsewhere online. It points to the closure of Jet.com, which was intended to offer products at lower prices than Amazon. In response, Amazon allegedly blocked sellers’ offers from its “Buy Box” display, causing their sales to plummet.

“Amazon’s punitive regime distorts basic market signals: one of the ways sellers respond to Amazon’s fee hikes is by increasing their own prices off Amazon,” the Amazon algorithm lawsuit states. “Amazon’s illegal tactics mean that when Amazon raises its fees, others — competitors, sellers and shoppers — suffer the harms.”

The FTC and 17 state attorneys general recently filed another Amazon pricing lawsuit alleging it has created an unfair monopoly that violates federal antitrust laws.

What do you think about the allegations an Amazon algorithm has caused consumers to pay inflated prices while online shopping? Tell us your thoughts in the comments.

The FTC is represented by its internal team of attorneys and the states are represented by their respective attorneys general.

The FTC Amazon prices lawsuit is Federal Trade Commission, et al. v. Amazon.com Inc., Case No. 2:23-cv-01495, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

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