DEVELOPING: Amazon Agrees to Settle Lawsuit Over Alleged Prime Scam

Amazon Agrees to Settle Lawsuit Over Alleged Prime Scam Amazon has agreed to settle a landmark lawsuit with the US government, agreeing to pay $1 billion in civil penalties and another $1.5 billion in redress payments to affected consumers. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) had accused Amazon of manipulating its web designs to trick tens of millions of people into paying for Prime memberships that were hard to cancel. The FTC brought the lawsuit in 2023, alleging Amazon broke the law by using "manipulative, coercive, and deceptive" practices. The settlement comes as a trial was set to begin in Seattle, Amazon's hometown. A jury would have determined whether Amazon broke the law. Instead, the company has agreed to settle without admitting wrongdoing. This deal marks one of the largest settlements ever reached by the FTC. The redress payments will go directly to affected consumers who were tricked into paying for Prime memberships. The parties are expected to finalize the settlement in the coming weeks. This is a developing story and more information will be provided as it becomes available. *This is a developing story. Updates will be provided as more information becomes available. Based on reporting from Npr.*