The FTC and 22 state AGs just sued Amazon, alleging it secretly overcharged advertisers more than $20 billion by manipulating its Sponsored Products auction — a hidden "soft reserve price" that inflated what sellers paid for years without disclosure.
Meanwhile, shipping just got more expensive for everyone: USPS announced its fourth rate hike of the year for peak season, and eBay is now defaulting sellers into passing along shipping discounts to buyers — both landing weeks before Q4 planning kicks into gear.
Here's what changed this week, and what it means for your business.
- ⚖️ FTC and 22 states sue Amazon over secret ad auction surcharges
- 📦 Holiday shipping costs are about to spike across every marketplace
AMAZON NEWS
Amazon is facing its biggest ad-related legal fight yet — and this time the FTC has 22 state attorneys general standing behind it.
On August 31, the FTC and state AGs sued Amazon, alleging the company "secretly and systematically overcharged" advertisers by more than $20 billion since 2019, when it allegedly added an undisclosed "soft reserve price" to its Sponsored Products auction without telling anyone. FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson said millions of advertisers were misled into paying inflated prices for years.
⚖️ Amazon's response
Amazon called the lawsuit "misguided", arguing the complaint misunderstands how ad auctions work and countering that its systems saved advertisers roughly $8 billion between 2021 and 2025. Amazon shares dropped about 2.5% on the news, and TechCrunch reports the case could take years to resolve.
What this means for sellers
If you run Sponsored Products or Sponsored Brands, this is worth watching closely — the case centers on exactly the auction mechanics that set your CPCs. Start pulling your own CPC and ACoS trend lines now so you have a clean before/after baseline if Amazon is ever forced to change how the auction works or issue advertiser remediation. In the meantime, don't wait on a settlement: keep testing bids down-funnel and diversifying acquisition (DSP, TikTok Shop ads, retail media elsewhere) so a chunk of your growth doesn't ride on one auction system under federal scrutiny.
HOT TOPIC
Holiday Shipping Costs Are About to Spike Across Every Marketplace
Forget the "we'll deal with shipping costs later" plan — two separate changes just moved up your Q4 prep timeline.
USPS announced a 6% average rate increase for Priority Mail, Ground Advantage, and Parcel Select running October through mid-January — its fourth postal rate hike this year, per Supply Chain Dive. At the same time, eBay is now defaulting sellers into passing their negotiated shipping discounts straight to buyers — sellers who want to keep that margin have to proactively opt out by September 25.
📦 Not just a USPS problem
This isn't isolated to one carrier or one marketplace. Amazon recently started letting sellers pay extra for Sub Same Day delivery, and carriers across the board are raising peak-season surcharges — a sign that logistics costs are shifting back onto sellers right as order volume (and customer expectations) peak for Q4.
What this means for sellers
Model your landed shipping cost now, not in November. If you sell on eBay, decide before September 25 whether you're opting out of the default discount pass-through — that's real margin sitting on the table either way. Across every channel, build the new rates into your holiday pricing and promo math early, and look at regional carriers or zone-skipping options if Priority Mail's increase eats too far into thin-margin SKUs.
