It is learned that the new FBA delivery fee policy in the United States in 2022 has been implemented. So in the past two days, many sellers have complained in the group that the delivery fee has increased so much that they can't afford to ship goods! It seems that product profits are facing another major blow, but competitors are still holding on firmly. Adhering to the principle of not moving unless the enemy moves, many sellers are still waiting and watching, and dare not raise prices easily. According to statistics, 82% of consumers consider price as an important factor in purchasing products on Amazon. Product pricing will directly affect the sales and conversion of the store, so Amazon sellers have strict control over the prices of their products and dare not adjust them at will. However, faced with fierce market competition, a small number of sellers resorted to evil intentions and made profits by illegally manipulating product prices. But the truth would eventually come to light, and this behavior was met with "justice." Seller sued for price manipulation It is learned that the U.S. Department of Justice recently released a notice on its official website stating that three Amazon sellers have confessed to the crime of conspiring to raise the prices of DVDs and Blu-ray discs. These sellers have been sued by the U.S. government for suspected product price fixing. The three Amazon sellers are accused of conspiring to fix the prices of DVDs and Blu-ray discs sold on Amazon, according to court documents filed in Knoxville, Tennessee. The three sellers were involved in a price-fixing conspiracy that began at least in November 2017 and lasted until October 29, 2019. It is reported that in order to implement this conspiracy, the three sellers communicated with each other through emails, text messages and phone calls, discussed the prices of DVDs and Blu-rays in various parts of the United States, and finally agreed to set a fixed floor price for the product to suppress market competition, and monitored each other to ensure compliance with the agreed price. As a result, they monopolized the category in terms of price and products, so that buyers could only see their products when searching for products. At the same time, the seller's plea agreement provided more details of the case. These three sellers used their monopoly position to raise product prices in many places in the United States, infringing on the rights of consumers. During this period, one of the sellers sold at least $360,000 worth of DVDs and Blu-ray discs on Amazon, while the other two earned at least $1.1 million , with total sales exceeding $1.46 million. The notice stated that the seller's price manipulation behavior violated the Sherman Act, and that through investigation and sentencing of those involved, consumer rights and platform interests can be effectively protected. The Justice Department's antitrust division said the case is under investigation, which means that more sellers may be involved and will be charged. It is understood that criminal violations of the Sherman Act can be punished by up to 10 years in prison and a personal criminal fine of $1 million . Currently, the Chicago Office of the Antitrust Division is prosecuting the case. According to the announcement on the Ministry of Justice’s official website, one of the sellers who pleaded guilty was sentenced on January 7, 2022, and the other three are scheduled to be sentenced on September 30, 2022. Foreign media reported that while the above sellers’ guilty pleas are good news for Amazon, the deceptive business practices of other sellers have plagued Amazon for years. For example, some sellers were accused of driving up prices at the height of the pandemic, stimulating sales growth by charging ridiculous prices for necessities, and severely damaging the interests of consumers and platform regulations. As this phenomenon has increased dramatically, Amazon has taken notice and issued important reminders, informing sellers not to engage in price gouging. Amazon: Sellers are not allowed to raise prices Recently, in response to the price gouging of epidemic prevention supplies on Amazon, Amazon US issued an announcement to remind sellers that unfair, excessive, and misleading prices that violate the market fair pricing policy may result in the suspension of seller accounts. The following is the content of the announcement: Cross-border navigation , anti-epidemic supplies have become a hit again, price fraud has surged, Amazon said that price gouging will result in account suspension! #Amazon##Cross-border headlines#Cross-border e-commerce video account ▲ Video account focuses on cross-border navigation
As the worsening epidemic has led to a surge in demand for epidemic prevention supplies, incidents of price gouging on Amazon have increased, especially for COVID-19 epidemic prevention supplies such as masks and nucleic acid test kits, which have seen the largest price fluctuations. The Marketplace Fair Pricing Policy protects Amazon customers from unfair, excessive, and misleading prices. Sellers who fail to comply with this policy may result in offer removal or account suspension. Amazon would like to remind all sellers that the price fraud prevention system attempts to take into account changes in local laws while also protecting buyers' consumer rights. Taking into account the increase in sellers' goods, shipping and labor costs, Amazon will continue to adjust the price fraud threshold based on the above cost changes. In fact, this is not the first time that Amazon has emphasized the issue of sellers’ product pricing. Since the outbreak of the epidemic, chaos in the cross-border circle has emerged one after another, and Amazon has repeatedly emphasized the importance of complying with platform rules. As we all know, Amazon is a very price-sensitive platform, so using the right pricing strategy is very important for sellers. The above cases and announcements also show that Amazon has zero tolerance for any violations. Therefore, as competition on the platform becomes increasingly fierce, sellers must not only conduct comprehensive research to determine that product pricing is reasonable, but also abide by platform rules and operate in compliance.
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