06.08.2024 21:11:00
Дата публикации
The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has launched an investigation into eight companies suspected of using customer data to set personalized prices.
This practice, known as “surveillance pricing,” raises concerns about privacy and fair competition.
The investigation aims to find out how AI and algorithms are used to change prices for products and services purchased online based on customer behavior and characteristics. This involves sifting through a lot of data.
Companies tailor prices based on:
• location,
• demographics,
• credit history,
• browsing history,
• analysis of past purchases.
As a result, different customers may pay different prices for the same products or services online.
Like many new profit-maximizing strategies, this practice has inevitably attracted the attention of the FTC. The investigation included requests to companies such as Mastercard, JPMorgan Chase, Accenture, McKinsey, Task Software, Revionics, Bloomreach, and Pros.
They advertise their technology that uses customer data to set prices on an individual level.
In particular, the agency is interested in how the collected data is used to set prices and how this may affect competition and consumer rights.
FTC Chair Lina Khan expressed concern that companies collecting and using Americans' personal data may be compromising their privacy and using it to increase their profits.
Khan called surveillance pricing a "shadowy ecosystem of intermediaries," which highlights the complexity and opacity of this phenomenon.
The companies responded to the FTC's requests in different ways. For example, Mastercard expressed a willingness to cooperate with the agency, while Revionics said it does not develop software that would recommend prices to specific individuals. Bloomreach expressed support for the investigation, emphasizing its commitment to consumer protection and fair competition.
The FTC plans to examine the types of products and services these companies offer, their data collection methods, their customer base, and how these factors affect pricing.
While the agency is currently collecting information and not bringing charges, the findings of this investigation could impact future regulation of AI practices and consumer protections.
(text translated automatically)
This practice, known as “surveillance pricing,” raises concerns about privacy and fair competition.
The investigation aims to find out how AI and algorithms are used to change prices for products and services purchased online based on customer behavior and characteristics. This involves sifting through a lot of data.
Companies tailor prices based on:
• location,
• demographics,
• credit history,
• browsing history,
• analysis of past purchases.
As a result, different customers may pay different prices for the same products or services online.
Like many new profit-maximizing strategies, this practice has inevitably attracted the attention of the FTC. The investigation included requests to companies such as Mastercard, JPMorgan Chase, Accenture, McKinsey, Task Software, Revionics, Bloomreach, and Pros.
They advertise their technology that uses customer data to set prices on an individual level.
In particular, the agency is interested in how the collected data is used to set prices and how this may affect competition and consumer rights.
FTC Chair Lina Khan expressed concern that companies collecting and using Americans' personal data may be compromising their privacy and using it to increase their profits.
Khan called surveillance pricing a "shadowy ecosystem of intermediaries," which highlights the complexity and opacity of this phenomenon.
The companies responded to the FTC's requests in different ways. For example, Mastercard expressed a willingness to cooperate with the agency, while Revionics said it does not develop software that would recommend prices to specific individuals. Bloomreach expressed support for the investigation, emphasizing its commitment to consumer protection and fair competition.
The FTC plans to examine the types of products and services these companies offer, their data collection methods, their customer base, and how these factors affect pricing.
While the agency is currently collecting information and not bringing charges, the findings of this investigation could impact future regulation of AI practices and consumer protections.
