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Amazon search results class action lawsuit overview:
- Who: Consumer advocate Robert Hammond filed a class action lawsuit against Amazon.
- Why: Amazon is accused of manipulating search results on its marketplace with its “Buy Box” algorithm, which is alleged to favour products that are more profitable for the company.
- Where: Across the UK.
Amazon manipulates the search results on its marketplace to sway consumers into purchasing the most profitable products, a new class action lawsuit alleges.
Consumer advocate Robert Hammond claims Amazon uses its “Buy Box” algorithm to artificially inflate product prices and illegally stifle competition — in an alleged violation of UK competition law.
Hammond argues Amazon has been using the Buy Box algorithm in its online marketplace to manipulate search results in favour of products that grant the company a greater profit, at the expense of millions of consumers.
“My economic experts have evidenced the real harm that consumers have suffered as a result of Amazon’s abuse of market dominance and I hope this case can help consumers receive redress for the corporation’s behaviour,” Hammon said, in a statement.
Hammond wants to represent a class of an estimated 49.4 million consumers in the UK who have had to overpay by more than £1 billion for products they purchased through Amazon Marketplace.
Products not featured in Amazon’s Buy Box less accessible, says class action
Hammond claims Amazon has developed an algorithm that determines the top-ranked item to appear in its Buy Box, which allows a consumer to purchase a product with a single click, and without seeing products from competing sellers.
Other offers on Amazon Marketplace, meanwhile, were made less accessible than those in the Buy Box and were only viewable on secondary web pages, according to the Amazon class action.
Hammond argues that, according to his “expert analysis,” consumers will purchase the product featured in its Buy Box — thereby accepting its recommendation — more than 80% of the time, without viewing other offers.
“I am delighted to have a best in class legal team to help me represent as many as 49 million UK consumers who have been negatively impacted by Amazon’s abuse of market dominance,” Hammond said.
A similar class action lawsuit was filed last year by US consumer advocate Julie Hunter over claims the company sways its customers into using the Buy Box feature on its Marketplace to make purchases that aren’t the best deal.
Have you made a purchase using Amazon’s Buy Box? Let us know in the comments!
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