A £1 billion ($1.27 billion) class action lawsuit accuses Amazon of forcing independent UK shops out of its online marketplace.
The British Independent Retailers Association (Bira) complaint, representing 35,000 vendors, alleges that Amazon has utilized store data to introduce competitive items since October 2015, according to a report from The Guardian.
Amazon Abuses Small Retailers, Bira Alleges
Amazon faces accusations of manipulating its "buy box," where most transactions take place, to direct customers away from independent sellers and towards its products.
Bira said that Amazon utilizes proprietary data to launch cheaper rival items and charges its members a non-negotiable 30% fee on each product sold, forcing UK independent businesses out of the market.
Bira stated that Amazon has been boosting its profits through "abusive conduct" and hurt the small independent retailers in the UK, "who are struggling in difficult economic times."
The organization will submit approximately 1,150 pages of papers to the London Competition Appeal Tribunal in support of its claim. An Amazon representative said that they have not yet seen the case but they believe that "it's unfounded and will reveal it in court."
In 2022, the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) began examining whether Amazon gave its own brands and logistical customers an undue advantage over third-party rivals in its marketplace. The probe and EU Commission investigation followed claims that Amazon copied items using third-party vendors' data.
In November 2018, Amazon addressed the probe by providing independent sellers with an equal opportunity to appear in the site's "buy box" and refraining from using third-party seller data for competitive advantage. Amazon also allowed merchants to negotiate shipping prices directly with independent suppliers, as promised to the EU in December 2022.
Amazon's 2023 gross profit was $270 billion. It earned $33.6 billion in 2023, up from $575 billion in worldwide revenues in the UK, its largest overseas market, per TechCrunch.
Amazon Allegedly Sold Tech to Russia, Breaching UK Sanctions
Separately, an Amazon ex-employee accused Amazon of violating UK sanctions by giving face recognition technology to Moscow following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Charles Forrest, a former Amazon Web Services (AWS) employee, claimed this in his unjust dismissal suit. Forrest asserts that his termination stemmed from his reporting of various concerns from November 2022 to May 2023, according to the Financial Times.
This week, the central London employment tribunal heard preliminary arguments. Amazon refutes the allegations, asserting that Forrest's termination was due to "gross misconduct" as he failed to fulfill his contracted hours or attend meetings and emails.
Forrest said he voiced concerns about Amazon's alleged misconduct on several grounds, including "illegal supply of facial recognition technology" to the state security forces of Russia following the 2022 Ukraine invasion and the UK's sanctions against Moscow.
Forrest said in tribunal submissions that Amazon 2020 obtained VisionLabs' face recognition technology "through what appears to be a shell company based in the Netherlands" and exploited it post-invasion
In response, an Amazon representative said they believe Forrest's claims "lack merit," which they will prove "through the legal process."
According to Forrest, Amazon acquired VisionLabs' face recognition technology through a Dutch shell firm in 2020 and exploited it after the incursion. But Amazon said that available proofs indicate that AWS "did not sell Amazon Rekognition services to VisionLabs."
The case is ongoing.
Related Article: Netflix Hit with $170 Million Lawsuit Over Stalker Portrayal
