# FTC and 22 states sue Amazon over ad-auction pricing

_Monday, August 31, 2026 at 4:20 PM EDT · Products, Policy · Latest · Tier 1 — Major_

![FTC and 22 states sue Amazon over ad-auction pricing — Primary](https://techcrunch.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/GettyImages-2217247219.jpg?w=1024)

The FTC and 22 states filed a lawsuit accusing Amazon of secretly raising prices in its advertising auctions. The complaint alleges that, starting in 2019, Amazon added a hidden soft reserve price to Sponsored Products auctions and caused advertisers to pay their own winning bids close to 80% of the time. The FTC says the practice affected more than one million brands and sellers and may have generated tens of billions of dollars. Amazon called the suit misguided.

## Sources

- [TechCrunch](https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/31/ftc-accuses-amazon-of-running-a-secret-ad-surcharge-scheme-in-new-lawsuit/)

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Canonical: https://techandbusiness.org/newswire/aWEa9eYHkbEiQQHIixsfiX
Retrieved: 2026-08-31T23:52:04.166Z
Publisher: Tech & Business (techandbusiness.org)