Amazon, the e-commerce powerhouse, is under legal attack from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and attorney generals from 17 states for allegedly maintaining illegal monopolies, as per the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. The accusations include leveraging market dominance unlawfully, suppressing competition, removing Prime shipping advantages for sellers offering lower-prices on alternate platforms and downgrading product listings from sellers providing discounted rates on other websites. This lawsuit echoes the one launched by the California Attorney General last year on similar grounds.

FTC Chair, Lina M. Khan, who has been a champion in the tech antitrust space since her appointment in 2021, condemned Amazon's alleged misuse of monopoly power for self-enrichment at costs of increased prices and degraded service for customers and businesses utilizing its platform. However, Amazon has refuted these allegations, alluding to factual and legal inaccuracies in the lawsuit.

This case constitutes the second ongoing legal clash between Amazon and the FTC. The earlier dispute initiated in mid-June accuses Amazon of deceiving customers in signing up for Amazon Prime and complicating their cancellation process.

Khan's tenure as FTC chair has seen numerous antitrust crackdown efforts in the tech industry, including an unsuccessful lawsuit attempt against Microsoft concerning the acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Despite recent legal setbacks, the FTC is persistent in its pursuit to ensure compliance with antitrust laws within the tech realm.