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Amazon works in three ways to pressure vendors into manipulating competitor prices, Bonta alleged.

In one supposed scheme, Amazon proposes price matching by agreeing to increase the price of a product or temporarily pause its sales, which then allows the other retailer to raise its price.

Another route Amazon frequently takes flips that scheme. When Amazon sees a rival offering a product at a price it considers unprofitable, it pressures vendors to get the rival to raise their price to a level Amazon likes. Once the rival raises its price, Amazon then matches it.

Finally, Amazon allegedly follows a third, arguably more aggressive, path to get vendors to remove products entirely from platforms offering lower prices. That way, Amazon won’t be forced to lower its price to compete.

All three scenarios raise prices for consumers, Bonta alleged.

In most examples, Amazon’s requests for price increases were met with urgency. Some prices spiked within a day, as vendors allegedly feared that Amazon might drop them from the platform or otherwise punish them for allowing cheaper sales elsewhere.

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