US-based e-commerce giant, Amazon, is set to have a trial at a federal court in Seattle, United States, later this week after the government’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) alleged that the company has tricked hundreds of millions of consumers who use its online shopping services, reported the news portal The New York Times on Monday, 22 September 2025.

In its lawsuit, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) claimed that the e-commerce giant had tricked millions of people who signed up to Amazon’s Prime membership program. They also alleged that the company made it hard for customers to cancel if they wanted to end their subscriptions.

“Amazon was aware for years that it was taking consumers’ money without their consent, yet chose to do nothing about it,” said the FTC in a court filing, cited in the news report.

The news portal’s report also highlighted that Amazon denied the allegations and now hopes that a jury will potentially understand their case and that people allegedly signed up to Prime based on it being a good deal.

What did Amazon say?

Denying the FTC allegations, an Amazon spokesperson, Mark Blafkin, highlighted how the company was making its Prime membership subscription ‘useful and valuable’ to customers.

“The way Amazon drives Prime subscribers is by making the service useful and valuable,” Blafkin told the news portal. “And our approach works — Prime, with hundreds of millions of members, is among the highest performing subscription programs of any kind, as measured by renewal rates and customer satisfaction.”

“We remain confident that the facts will show these executives acted properly and we always put customers first,” said Blafkin in the statement.

FTC’s target

FTC seeks justice for the American people who are allegedly harmed by Amazon’s practices with its Prime memberships.

“The Trump-Vance F.T.C. intends to secure justice for Americans harmed by Amazon’s practices,” Joe Simonson, an F.T.C. spokesman, said in a statement. “We’re looking forward to the trial,” he said.

According to the news portal’s report, Amazon introduced its Prime two decades ago, and since then, the business has grown into “the world’s largest subscription service.”

The report also highlighted that the cost of a Prime membership in the US is $139 per year or $14.99 per month, which comprises fast shipping, video streaming, and discounts at Whole Foods.

“We want Prime to be such a good value, you’d be irresponsible not to be a member,” said Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos in 2016.

The jury selection started on Monday, 22 September 2025, as the trial is set to start on Tuesday, 23 September 2025. The trial is expected to last for nearly a month, and in case the jury concludes that Amazon broke the law, the judge will determine any penalties. However, the FTC has not asked for any monetary damages, according to the news portal’s report.