FTC’s January 2025 report found retailers varying prices based on shopper data
The Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday released a proposed policy that could bring federal charges against companies that vary prices based on shopper data.
In a statement Wednesday, FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson said: “When consumers see a listed price, they expect it to be same price that everyone else sees, not the retailer’s estimate of how much they are willing to pay based on their personal data.”
The proposed policy builds on the FTC’s January 2025 preliminary report on the practice. That report found that grocers, clothing companies and other retailers were using third-party firms to vary online prices for individual shoppers based on three signals: shoppers’ locations, browsing histories, and how long items sat in their virtual shopping carts.
The January 2025 report offered a hypothetical example: a consumer profiled as a new parent might be shown higher-priced baby thermometers on the first page of search results.
Under the proposed policy, undisclosed price variation based on shopper data would be treated as a potential basis for federal charges against the companies that use it.