POST OF THE WEEK
BLACK MARKET
Big news from the Grand Canyon State—Arizona’s Attorney General Kris Mayes is taking on Amazon with two new lawsuits. The Verge reported the details, and if you’ve been following the drama with the Federal Trade Commission, these might ring a bell. 🔔
Lawsuit #1: The Prime trap
If this sounds familiar, it’s because the FTC already took action against Amazon over the same dark pattern issue back in June.
Lawsuit #2: Monopoly moves
The kind of deal mentioned, known as a “most favored nation” clause, has been under fire in other states, too. The District of Columbia and California have taken action against it, but the former's case was thrown out. 🗑️
Lawsuit #2.1: The Buy Box controversy
This echoes the FTC's antitrust case against Amazon, supported by multiple state AGs. It highlights how such control can lead to anti-competitive behavior and consumer deception.
Amazon fires back
Amazon spokesperson Tim Doyle criticized the Arizona AG for filing lawsuits without reviewing Amazon's documents, calling the allegations a “fundamental misunderstanding and mischaracterization” of their business practices.
Doyle emphasized that Amazon's operations aim to offer fair prices and services for consumers and sellers, contrary to the lawsuits' claims. ❎
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BITES OF THE WEEK
HOT TOPIC
ICYDK, TikTok is facing several issues: from data privacy risks to the spread of misinformation. Now, there’s another significant problem: a possible ban in the U.S. 🚫
A bill passed by the U.S. Senate and signed into law by President Biden in late April 2024 could ban TikTok if its owner, ByteDance, doesn’t sell the app within the next year.
However, according to Reuters, some sellers are worried about the impact of this bill.
❌ Why do some sellers oppose the ban?
🤹♂️ Finding the perfect balance
The question is: can we protect our digital borders without crushing the hopes of small business owners? Let's hope for a solution that balances both: keeping our data safe while leaving the door open for small businesses to thrive. 🌱
ACTIONABLE ADVICE
Another hot and trending topic, aside from bans and controversies, is “sustainability.”
In recent times, it refers to the environmental impact of your business. Many companies have pledged to go carbon-neutral.
Sounds good until reports showed some companies are faking their sustainability efforts - a.k.a “greenwashing.”
Be clean, be green
Consumers are more discerning about genuine sustainable practices. Entrepreneur lays down 4 ways to truly be green (with AI help).
The main problem in business is making more but selling less. Minimize overproduction (waste) by predicting product demand. AI can calculate these predictive analytics.
“Eco-friendly” tags can be a bonus OR make consumers feel something was sacrificed for it. Monitor how others market, price, and label their sustainable goods.
Packaging has operational costs, material resources, and manufacturing wastes. Choose biodegradable or reusable packaging solutions. Have AI get buyer feedback on their preferred packaging.
All the above steps require data collection and analysis. However, large-scale data collection requires significant energy. Utilizing existing infrastructure and shared resources, like residential proxies and renewed data centers, can make data collection more sustainable.
We can’t stress enough the importance of sustainable practices to your long-term goals. It’s not easy, but with technology, it’s possible.