The Federal Trade Commission sued Amazon today, alleging that the company purposefully worked for years to enroll clients in Amazon Prime without their consent and made it difficult for them to cancel their subscriptions. The FTC's complaint claims that Amazon duped millions of customers into enrolling in Prime. Amazon Prime is a $139 annual subscription service that offers customers features like free shipping on select items, access to Prime Video and Prime Music, and more. - More than 200 million members worldwide are subscribers.
- "Amazon tricked and trapped people into recurring subscriptions without their consent, not only frustrating users but also costing them significant money," FTC Chair Lina Khan said in a statement.
- The investigation into these claims began in March 2021, and the FTC seeks monetary civil penalties.
- They have not shared how much they are seeking.
- The lawsuit claims that Amazon used "manipulative, coercive, or deceptive user interface designs known as dark patterns" to hide the fact that Amazon Prime was automatically renewing a subscription.
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