Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) announced that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been looking into sign-up and cancellation processes for its Prime Program since March 2021. The Business Insider had previously made claims on the probe. However, it was only recently that the company confirmed the speculation.
Amazon says the probe is burdensome and disruptive
Amazon has claimed that the FTC has made unnecessary and burdensome requests. The company also claims that the agency has been harassing its top executives. Amazon states that the probe began the filing in March 2021, demanding information.
The FTC then expanded its investigation into non-Prime subscription programs in June. The programs I clouded Subscribe & Save, Kindle Unlimited, Amazon Music, and Audible. Amazon states that the requests for information and burdensome and too broad.
The FTC started the probe to look into the steps Amazon customers took to cancel or subscribe to Prime. Amazon claims that it has given more than 37,000 pages of documents. Moreover, the FTC has met the Amazon staff to gather information from the company.
In a report filed on August 5, the company wants the FTC to give it more time to respond to its comments. Amazon is also asking the FTC to give it time to react to its new demands. The regulator has not responded to any request for comments.
Amazon claims that the FTC harasses former and current employees
Amazon also alleges that the regulator has been harassing its top executives, including the current executive chairman and former CEO, Jeff Bezos, and the current CEO, Andy Jassy. The FTC has been asking the executives to testify in an investigation that includes several open-ended topics.
Amazon has stated that this demand is burdensome and unreasonable. The company has also noted that the move does nothing but pressure executives while disrupting business. Moreover, the FTC has started serving individual investigative demands for former and current company employees without its knowledge.
The FTC under Lina Khan is known for her article titled Amazon’s Antitrust Paradox. The FTC has now opened probes into various companies, including Amazon, Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ: META) and Alphabet Inc Class C (NASDAQ: GOOG).
