AG sues Amazon in Arizona for “unfair” business practices

PHOENIX — Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes has filed two lawsuits against Amazon that accuse the company of “unfair and deceptive business practices.”

Mayes announced Wednesday that his office was suing Amazon over the company’s “confusing” cancellation process and for its “unfair” continuation of its market dominance.

The AG’s Office is filing two lawsuits under the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act and the Arizona Uniform Antitrust Law.

“Amazon’s anticompetitive and monopolistic practices have artificially inflated prices for Arizona consumers and harmed small, third-party retailers that rely on its platform,” Mayes said in a statement.

One of the lawsuits specifically targets an Amazon algorithm that the AG’s office says is “biased” and aims to inflate the company’s profits by favoring Amazon products over smaller third-party sellers.

The lawsuit further accuses Amazon of hindering market competition by preventing third-party sellers from offering lower prices outside of the Amazon platform.

12News reached out to Amazon for comment and did not receive a response.

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“The Valley” is what locals call the Phoenix metropolitan area. It is considered the largest metropolitan area in the Southwest.

The valley is made up of several major cities other than Phoenix, including:

• Mesa
• Chandler
• Scottsdale
• Temple
• Glendale
• Surprise
• Peoria
• Gilbert
• The Mirage
• Avondale
• Litchfield Park
• Good year
• Buckeye

Whether a city is in the “East Valley” or “West Valley” depends on its location relative to Phoenix.

Valley cities have a combined population of 4,845,832 people, according to the 2020 United States Census. This makes it the 11th largest metropolitan area in the country, just behind the Boston and Atlanta areas.

How big is Maricopa County?

Maricopa County is the 4th largest county in the United States by population with 4,485,414 residents, according to the 2020 census.

The county is home to approximately 63% of Arizona’s population and spans 9,224 square miles. This makes the county larger than seven U.S. states (Rhode Island, Delaware, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Jersey, Massachusetts and New Hampshire).

One of the largest park systems in the country is also located in Maricopa County. The county has approximately 120,000 acres of open parks including hundreds of miles of trails, nature centers and campgrounds.

The county seat is located in Phoenix, which is also the state capital and the fifth most populous city in the United States according to the census.

The county is named for the Maricopa, or Piipaash, Native American tribe.