Here’s how Amazon’s price fixing allegedly drove up prices everywhere

Apr 21, 2026 03:39 AM - 13 hours ago 588

Richard Lawler

is a elder editor pursuing news crossed tech, culture, policy, and entertainment. He joined The Verge successful 2021 aft respective years covering news astatine Engadget.

On Monday, California Attorney General Rob Bonta revealed the evidence of alleged price-fixing by Amazon. The authorities revenge a petition to the Supreme Court successful February for a preliminary injunction to extremity Amazon’s behaviour while the suit it originally revenge successful 2022 proceeds, and is now making that 16-page archive available, “largely unredacted.” It lays retired really Amazon allegedly schemed to raise different retailers’ prices up of Prime Day, aliases worked pinch its vendors to make judge items disposable astatine a discount elsewhere were abruptly retired of banal and unavailable for the little price.

Bonta says this archive shows really the strategy useful pinch Amazon, vendors, and its expected competition, for illustration Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Chewy, and Home Depot, successful 3 ways:

Amazon aliases its competitor, done their communal vendor, will work together to summation the unit value aliases make a merchandise temporarily unavailable, truthful that the different retailer tin lucifer the accrued marketplace price, expanding the value for consumers.
A competitor offering a cheaper value connected a merchandise will summation its unit value astatine Amazon’s petition (a petition made done the vendor), truthful that Amazon tin past lucifer that accrued unit price, thereby expanding the value for consumers.
The vendor removes a merchandise from a competing retailer that is offering a little value than Amazon, truthful that the little value is nary longer disposable successful the marketplace and Amazon past raises its unit price, resulting successful a higher value for consumers.

Two examples from the archive (available successful afloat below) jump out, for illustration this 1 wherever Amazon sent Levi’s examples of little prices connected Walmart.com, and a consequence from Levi’s confirming that “I talked to Walmart and they person collaborated pinch america to… return Easy Khaki Classic fresh backmost up to ladder SPP price, $29.99 immediately.”

Image: California AGs office

Another illustration alleged by Bonta is connection showing Amazon asking vendors for illustration Scotts and Hanes to “look into” raising prices connected competing websites. In the Scotts example, it specifically cites Amazon’s self-created Prime Day arena arsenic a logic to raise the value for a fewer days.

In 1 specified case, Amazon directed vendor Scotts (a shaper of lawn/garden products) to “reach retired to the retailer that we are value matching to and person them raise their prices, moreover if it is conscionable for the 3 days starring up to [Prime Day].” In different example, Amazon sent Hanes (an apparel vendor) links to Target.com and Walmart.com showing little prices than were connected Amazon, and Hanes confirmed that it “reached retired to Target and Walmart to person the prices increased.”

“My agency has uncovered grounds that Amazon bullied vendors to hike up the value of their products sold astatine different shops, aliases secured the removal of these products altogether, to guarantee Amazon was the cheapest spot consumers could find products,” said Bonta successful a statement. In an question and reply pinch the New York Times, he said, “You don’t spot value fixing truthful explicitly and egregiously successful penning for illustration this.” Amazon did not instantly respond to a petition for remark from The Verge.

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