Amazon $2.5B Settlement Over Prime Dark Patterns

Amazon agreed to a $2.5 billion settlement with the Federal Trade Commission to resolve allegations it used deceptive 'dark pattern' interfaces to enroll millions in Prime and made cancellations unduly difficult, paying $1 billion in civil penalties and $1.5 billion in consumer refunds. The deal, reached days into a Seattle trial of a case the FTC filed in 2023, requires court approval and resolves claims against Amazon and two senior executives. The settlement provides automatic refunds (up to about $51 for some single‑page checkout customers), a claims process for more than 30 million affected users, and requires Amazon to change Prime enrollment and cancellation practices—including clearer opt-outs, prominent cost and billing notices, and making it as easy to cancel as to sign up. Amazon denied wrongdoing and said it settled to avoid prolonged litigation; FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson called the interfaces “sophisticated subscription traps.”