It’s been a long, contentious saga, but in the end… Amazon decided to play fair.
The tech behemoth agreed to implement a series of changes to its “anti-competitive business practices” to avoid hefty fines from the European Commision.
Good call, Amazon: The EU first threatened to sanction Amazon for using non-public user data to gain competitive advantage for its own retail business.
Later on, it opened a second investigation, claiming Amazon was pushing its own “buy box” and “Prime” logistics service over third-party carriers.
How big of a fine are we talking? About 10% of the platform’s entire annual revenue. So yeah, a lot.
What’s changing: Amazon agreed to two major amends…
- To no longer use non-public seller data to benefit its own business.
- To establish non-discriminatory conditions and criteria for its logistic services, and to allow Prime sellers the freedom to choose any carrier.
Why we care: This is a big win for Amazon retailers. They’ll finally be able to play on a more level field while having more freedom of choice when it comes to fulfillment.
That’s the kind of news you want to hear at the end of the year!