Industry, Advocates Split over FTC’s Personalized Pricing Proposal

Industry, advocates split over FTC’s personalized pricing proposal

The Federal Trade Commission's proposed enforcement policy statement on personalized pricing drew nearly 3,700 public comments before its docket closed Sept. 25, with retail and tech industry groups raising concerns about a proposal that says companies using personalized pricing should disclose when a price is personalized, the basis for it and what data was used, while consumer advocates argued it does not go far enough.

NetChoice To FTC: Withdraw Personalized Pricing Proposal

The Federal Trade Commission should withdraw a proposal that would require companies to disclose their use of personalized pricing in some circumstances, the tech industry group NetChoice says. It argues that the commission lacks evidence of "a widespread problem warranting economy-wide enforcement policy."

Comments to Federal Trade Commission Regarding Personalized Pricing

Mandating broader transparency around algorithmic or personalized pricing requires congressional legislation to weigh costs and benefits, and the FTC should revise its policy statement to target law violations without restricting legitimate personalized pricing.