Amazon to pay potentially $2.5 billion for accusations of misleading Prime subscriptions
Despite maintaining friendly ties with Trump, Amazon has agreed to pay up to $2.5 billion in a settlement for a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit over allegedly questionable practices to boost Prime subscriptions. The Trump administration appears to be taking credit for this significant agreement.
Multi-billion dollar fine
Under the agreement, Amazon will pay a civil fine of $1 billion – the largest fine in history for violating FTC rules. The company will also refund $1.5 billion to approximately 35 million consumers affected by unwanted Prime subscriptions or delayed cancellations. As part of the settlement, Amazon will need to implement significant changes to the subscription and cancellation processes to make them more user-friendly.
A telling silence
Amazon did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Gizmodo. This development comes at a time when Bezos and other tech executives are seeking closer ties with Trump, whether through donations to his re-election fund or attending meetings and events. There have been reports that Bezos changed plans to display Trump’s tariffs alongside Amazon product prices after a phone call from the President, which was labeled as “a hostile and political action” by the White House press secretary, Karoline Leaitt.
