Amazon Boosted Junk Ads and Deleted Messages To Thwart Antitrust Probe, FTC Says (bloomberg.com) 28
Amazon doubled the number of junk ads to boost profits and deleted internal communications to thwart a federal antitrust probe, according to fresh details released by the US Federal Trade Commission in a less redacted complaint against the online retail giant Thursday. From a report: Amazon's founder and former Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos personally ordered executives to accept more ads, even ones the company had internally labeled as "defects," indicating they weren't relevant to user searches, according to the new version of the complaint. The FTC alleges that Amazon's increased use of ads boosts profits while it harms sellers and consumers, making it harder for shoppers to find products they are searching for. "We'd be crazy not to" increase the number of advertisements shown to shoppers," the FTC quoted Amazon executives as saying.
One executive compiled a number of the defective ads showing "buck urine" showing up in response to searches for "water bottles" or T-shirts for the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team in response to queries for the Seattle Seahawks football team merchandise. In third quarter 2023 earnings announced last week, Amazon reported advertising revenue of $12.1 billion, making the company's ad unit its fastest-growing business. The company also deleted internal communications using the "disappearing message" feature of Signal and destroyed more than two years' worth of such communications, from June 2019 to at least early 2022, the FTC alleged.
One executive compiled a number of the defective ads showing "buck urine" showing up in response to searches for "water bottles" or T-shirts for the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team in response to queries for the Seattle Seahawks football team merchandise. In third quarter 2023 earnings announced last week, Amazon reported advertising revenue of $12.1 billion, making the company's ad unit its fastest-growing business. The company also deleted internal communications using the "disappearing message" feature of Signal and destroyed more than two years' worth of such communications, from June 2019 to at least early 2022, the FTC alleged.
Paywall, can't read article (Score:2)
But, Amazon seems to be overflowing with crap and it's getting harder to find anything good
Re:Paywall, can't read article (Score:5, Informative)
It's by design, as this article points out. The idea being that by making it take longer and longer for your to find what you want, they can show you even more ads, and make more money for Amazon. It's not like you can go anywhere else, Amazon owns the online retail space. And who knows, maybe you'll end up buying one of the products in the ads they showed you! It's all upside from Amazon's point of view.
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It's not like you can go anywhere else, Amazon owns the online retail space.
Partially true. But you can go to specialty and retailer shopping sites to buy many classes of product. And it means I use Amazon less since I know I cannot find large classes of product there any more. I do use Amazon for some things, and for many others I am forced to use a more complex shopping strategy. Amazon can be used to reveal the likely vendors and then go to their sites directly, then once having the specific product you want go back to Amazon to see if a lower price is offered there.
It is amazi
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this reason is why I continue to use newegg even if a little more costly than amazon for most my PC/tech needs.
Just wish newegg had all the other stuff like raspberry pi and their eco system.
But as far as ordering other stuff, is there anything else even competitive? (price, item list, convenience)
Overstock is not even close, and I live a few miles from them.
Re: Paywall, can't read article (Score:2)
Hi, I boycott Amazon since 2012, I'm still alive and I do shop online. I made an exception that one time I got gifted an Amazon voucher.
Your statement is simply not true, but most people do not realise it. I think that is Amazon's true victory: changing how people think.
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Does that include avoiding sites hosted on AWS which is about 1/3 of the internet in the English speaking world?
I pretty much concluded Amazon is TBTA - to big to avoid
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At least you can avoid giving money directly to Amazon.
But, you are right, if you shop elsewhere, chances are those sites have at least some involvement with AWS. Even if they don't directly run on AWS, they probably have processes (backups, LoB software, etc) that run on AWS...
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There is always the other evil, Walmart which I believe does not use AWS (or at least it didn't back in 2022).
Re: Paywall, can't read article (Score:2)
It does not but that's beside the point. This discussion is clearly and obviously about the online shop, the one where you spend money and get served ads. Web hosting is a separate business. I can't control where people host their website, but I can choose to not order from Amazon, and I do that.
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Yeah. This isn't a Standard Oil-type monopoly. Between the 1970s and the Biden administration, we didn't see too much enforcement against this type of anti-consumer behavior Part of me thinks that in a free market, market discipline should punish bad actors. But it hasn't.
It's Amazon, which has the resources to defend itself. But I would be happier if there was a bright line rule so consumers have incentive to spend an extra $3 to buy from a company that wasn't shittifying the UX for three cents a click.
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It's not like you can go anywhere else, Amazon owns the online retail space.
Not nearly true. I basically only shop books at Amazon, because I mostly buy english books and the selection from local retailers is pretty limited. Occasionally, there is something else that I cannot get locally or from AliExpress and then I look at Amazon. I also use Amazon for reviews and price comparison. Usually local suppliers are cheaper, but occasionally Amazon is a lot cheaper.
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It's by design, as this article points out. The idea being that by making it take longer and longer for your to find what you want, they can show you even more ads, and make more money for Amazon. It's not like you can go anywhere else, Amazon owns the online retail space. And who knows, maybe you'll end up buying one of the products in the ads they showed you! It's all upside from Amazon's point of view.
Pats Ublock Origin on the head "who's a good little ad blocker, yes you are, yes you are".
With Amazon I barely even bother outside of official stores these days. Long gone are the days where you can find something useful from the myriad of identical tat sellers. I wanted a drink bottle the other day as I'd lost my old one and it didn't look like I'd get a freebee from a vendor any time soon, All I could find on Amazon were NONAMEBRAND Motivational Drink bottle... I just wanted a plain one... All of them
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Non-paywall version (Score:3)
https://www.investing.com/news... [investing.com]
Although it isn't much more than TFS, (which is more than the %$#@! Bloomberg TFA).
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Amazon is turning into Wish and Temu.
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To be fair, Trump is not a smart crook. He is just one with powerful friends and a lot of useful idiots cheering for him. Does not look like he is getting away this time though.
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He is "smart" in that he finds a way to sucker staff & minions to do his dirty work using a combination of BS and charisma.
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Well, he certainly is a master manipulator. But smart crooks do not step outside of their area of expertise and do not try scams that are too big for them. Trump has.
Ads are monopolistic? (Score:1)
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Auntie Trust (Score:2)
Signal not Chime? (Score:2)
Now I find they used Signal internally for similar reason as to why Signal is my preferred IM. I guess I can uninstall Chime and next time I deal with them ask then to resend invites using Signal?