Consumer rights advocate Julie Hunter plans to bring the
collective action on behalf of British consumers who have made purchases on
Amazon since October 2016, lawyers representing her said.
The proposed case — which Amazon said was "without
merit" — would be the latest mass action against a tech giant to be filed
at London's Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT).
Law firm Hausfeld, which represents Hunter, said on Thursday
that Amazon has breached competition law by using “a secretive and
self-favouring algorithm” to promote its own products through the “Buy Box”
feature on its website.
Hunter said in a statement, “Far from being a recommendation
based on price or quality, the Buy Box favours products sold by Amazon itself,
or by retailers who pay Amazon for handling their logistics. Other sellers,
however good their offers might be, are effectively shut out.”
An Amazon spokesperson said in a statement, “This claim is
without merit and we're confident that will become clear through the legal
process.”
The lawsuit is expected to be filed at the CAT by the end of
this month and will have to be certified by the tribunal before it can proceed.
It is being brought on an “opt-out” basis, meaning that any
potential claimants will be included in the claim unless they choose to opt
out.
The case follows the announcement by Britain's antitrust
watchdog in July that it is investigating Amazon over suspected breaches of
competition law, including how it selects which products are placed within the
“Buy Box” feature.
Amazon has faced similar probes elsewhere, recently making
an offer to the European Commission to avert possible hefty EU antitrust fines.
The platform has also declined to describe its
product-search system to an Australian competition regulator which has heard complaints
of large marketplace platforms giving preference to in-house wares.
The CAT authorised an estimated GBP 920 milion damages claim
against Google in July and approved another case worth up to GBP 1.7 billion
against Apple in May.
The tribunal is also due to decide in January whether to
give the go-ahead to a claim valued at up to GBP 2.2 billion against Meta
Platforms, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, over alleged anti-competitive
behaviour.
Google and Apple deny the allegations against them,
according to court filings, and Meta did not immediately respond to a Reuters
request for comment. © Reuters
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