The Federal Trade Commission recently filed a complaint against Amazon, accusing the company of enrolling consumers into its Prime program without consent and intentionally creating hurdles for them to cancel their subscriptions.
Amazon reportedly employed manipulative and deceptive user-interface designs, commonly referred to as "dark patterns," to deceive consumers into signing up for automatically renewing Prime subscriptions, according to a June 21 news release.
“Amazon tricked and trapped people into recurring subscriptions without their consent, not only frustrating users but also costing them significant money,” FTC Chair Lina M. Khan said in the release.
Certain sections of the complaint are currently redacted, and the FTC stated continued secrecy is unnecessary, the release reported. The complaint contains a range of allegations relating to Amazon's failure to prevent nonconsensual enrollment in Prime and the difficulties faced by consumers when attempting to unsubscribe from the service. The FTC asserts Amazon's utilization of "dark patterns" violated both the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act.
The complaint asserts Amazon was aware of the nonconsensual enrollments and the complex cancellation process, but failed to take significant action until the FTC investigation was initiated. Additionally, the complaint alleges Amazon obstructed and delayed the FTC's investigation on multiple occasions.
According to the FTC's complaint, Amazon deliberately made the cancellation process challenging for Prime subscribers seeking to terminate their memberships. Rather than facilitating cancellations, the company's primary objective was to impede them. Amazon's leadership reportedly rejected or delayed changes that would have simplified the cancellation process, citing potential negative effects on the company's profitability.
The complaint outlines how, during the online checkout process, consumers were presented with numerous opportunities to subscribe to Amazon Prime. In many cases, the option to purchase items without subscribing to Prime was reportedly intentionally made more challenging to locate.
Furthermore, the button presented to consumers to complete their transaction often failed to clearly indicate that selecting that option would also result in joining Prime through a recurring subscription, according to the complaint.
The FTC alleges Amazon implemented a cancellation process designed to discourage consumers from successfully unsubscribing from Prime, the complaint reported. The complaint highlights the complex steps consumers had to navigate to cancel the service.
Upon finding the cancellation flow, they were directed to multiple pages offering discounts to continue the subscription, disable the auto-renew feature or choose not to cancel. Only after navigating through these pages could consumers finally cancel the service, the complaint said.
“These manipulative tactics harm consumers and law-abiding businesses alike," Khan added, according to the release. "The FTC will continue to vigorously protect Americans from 'dark patterns' and other unfair or deceptive practices in digital markets.”
The FTC's complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington following a unanimous 3-0 vote by the Commission, authorizing its staff to proceed with the complaint against Amazon, the release said.
