Amazon confirms that it waives charging additional fees to the seller

Jonathan Hillson, Amazon’s head of public relations, said The edge in an email stating that “the 2% Seller Fulfilled Prime fee was intended to cover our costs” but added that the company decided not to move forward because it was concerned that “feeling of the Seller Related Fees” may affect participation in the program.

Hillson added that Amazon is “committed to supporting sellers’ success, and that includes listening to their feedback.” According to a Bloomberg report, Amazon did not provide an explanation of the fees when it spoke to merchants in August.

These fees would have only affected members of the Seller Fulfilled Prime program, which gives sellers the option to continue shipping their own products without giving up the coveted “Prime” label that comes with the promise of one- to two-day delivery. This could appeal to companies that want more control over the handling of their products rather than handing them off to another company’s increasingly disgruntled employees.

The Federal Trade Commission plans to file a lawsuit, alleging that Amazon forces its sellers to enter into deals they would prefer not to participate in. The FTC should file an antitrust lawsuit over this very idea. The regulator is already taking the company to court over allegations that it tricked customers into signing up for its Prime service.

Updated September 20, 2023, 7:40 p.m. ET: Updated with a link to Bloomberg’s reports.