Japan’s Fair Trade Commission is considering launching an investigation of Amazon Japan’s loyalty program to determine whether the online retailer’s policy of requiring third-party sellers to cover the cost of purchase points violates antitrust laws.
The Japan unit of the US-based company has told third-party sellers that it will change its points system in late May, making sellers responsible for covering the cost.
Altering contracts without specifying the direct benefits to the sellers could be deemed an abuse of Amazon Japan’s dominant position, according to a source at the commission.
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