How Amazon Makes You Pay More For Everything

An Amazon customer ordered a hat. She was sent a vial of scorpion venom instead.

That customer, writer Meagan Day, wanted to find out why.

Her investigation exposed why Amazon is now charged with running an illegal monopoly in a landmark FTC suit.

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[hclyrics]

Yeah, we're destroying the wrong Amazon if you ask me.

[dottyjyoung]

Yep, I'm a former Amazon seller.
They use us to get free products.
They charge us to send it in. They charge us to store it.
They charge us to bring search traffic.
They charge us MONTHLY for the privilege of even existing on the platform, & if the price drops too low, they charge us to dispose of the product, or send it back to us.

[onjikun]

This video pretty much sums up why I shop on Amazon as little as possible, and try to buy directly from a company's own website instead whenever I can. Fingers crossed that Amazon is found guilty in the FTC suit.

[nathanbrady]

Something I've learned in all my years of retail is Americans will gladly pay MORE for an item as long as they're told they're paying less.

[ericherde]

It’s great that you’re teaching people about how terrible Amazon is, but you never explained why you got scorpion venom instead of the hats you ordered.

[CattheClownster]

Why the FUCK is there a statutory maximum that corporations can be fined? What kind of bullshit is that?

[cm]

I feel like there was an interesting story to be told about the prevalence of shipping illicit products via fake listings that was missed here.

[hughquigley]

We look back on the big oil, steel, meatpacking, etc. companies from the Gilded Age (1920s) with immense disdain... can you even imagine how people will look back on Amazon (and other tech giants) that is many times more powerful than those monopolies ever were?

[TheRuralUrbanist]

Honestly, I've stopped ordering on Amazon... at least to the extent that's possible.

But unfortunately, sometimes, there is no alternative anymore. And i think that's the point, they've killed so many specialty store that you need to buy from them.

Down with monoplies, support small and local!

[paulas_lens]

Overnight, if *ALL* of us quit Amazon - it would be over. We have so much power we just won’t use it.

[dvdv]

"When someone's that wealthy, someone and some loophole is being exploited."

Billionaires shouldn't exist.

[rjpike]

Speaking of their shipping, they pay their drivers less than half of what UPS drivers make but make them do more deliveries. Research that.

[MyReviews_FOSS]

Proud to say that I canceled my prime 5 years ago and never looked back. I only shop there when I absolutely have to. Things are not "cheaper" there anymore. Often actually more expensive than other places.

[Evan-islc]

An excellent litmus test for whether a person actually cares enough about the economic problems in this country to do anything is to ask them to cancel their prime subscription on the spot.

[stevechance]

Every dollar Amazon takes in comes from us the consumers. The "inflated seller fees" that sellers have to pay Amazon, simply means we are paying a higher price for that item. Amazon is shafting us!!!

[napalmholocaust]

Just saw a test of the highest rated amazon automotive fuses. A two amp fuse didn't pop till 30 amps. That's your car on fire, period. And it was the best recommended product.
B.S..

[Sythemn]

Amazon will also block reviews where you point out the other reviews are fake. They don't want you to know what you're buying.

[milascave]

Not just the internet. They stopped selling a lot of stuff at brick and mortar places, too. So you have to buy stuff off Amazon, get stuff that is not really what you wanted, and sometimes not getting your stuff at all.

[dvdv]

Greed is not the desire for more, it's the desire for more at the expense of others.

[MOSP-UK]

It's horrific to search for known brands, amazon swamps every search with unknown Chinese brands, total garbage.