For the Naysayers, here is what happens in a National Emergency. Amazon Has Suspended 6,000 Seller Accounts for Pandemic Price Gouging Amazon Has Suspended 6,000 Seller Accounts for Pandemic Price Gouging By Jack Phillips April 16, 2020 Updated: April 16, 2020 Print Amazon said in a letter to investigators on Thursday that more than 6,000 seller accounts were suspended due to price gouging amid the CCP virus pandemic. The company’s CEO, Jeff Bezos, said the firm also removed more than 500,000 listings on its website for price gouging. “Amazon turned over information about sellers we suspect engaged in price gouging of products related to COVID-19 to 42 state attorneys general offices,” Bezos wrote in a filing. “To accelerate our response to price-gouging incidents, we created a special communication channel for state attorneys general to quickly and easily escalate consumer complaints to us.” The suspensions of accounts came after a letter from Congressional lawmakers to Federal Trade Commission Chairman Joseph Simons called for investigations into reports of price gouging. “The FTC should be just as vigilant as ever during the COVID-19 pandemic,” a bipartisan group of lawmakers said in a letter to Simons, dated Tuesday. CCP VIRUS SPECIAL COVERAGE “Although these are incredibly difficult times, they are an important reminder that what we do as a company can make a big difference in people’s lives,” Bezos also said Thursday. “Customers count on us to be there, and we are fortunate to be able to help. With our scale and ability to innovate quickly, Amazon can make a positive impact and be an organizing force for progress.”
I'm not persuaded that it's Amazon's responsibility to enforce the "rules" put out by dot gov. On the other hand, if dot gov asks for ads to be taken down as a direct result of the seller's offense, that's fine with me. Let them argue the constitutionality in court afterwards. Amazon's interest in profit is OK across the board. Looking out for the stockholders' interests is a prime responsibility.
So a billionaire ass hat who made his billions buy undercutting the competition then gouges when total market dominance is achieved is shutting people down for providing goods when idiots are willing to pay absorbent prices? But what is gouging, did they define it or do they "just know it when they see it" and enforce accordingly? Let's run this logic out both ways. If you can't raise prices to stop people from hoarding during high deman then why not fix prices when no one wants something, like all the gasoline and diesel flooding the market? Why not keep gas prices around $2.50 and diesel around $3, that way people don't horde it and when prices return to normal it doesn't seem like gouging all the time?
Amazon's preferred method of dealing with suspected problems is to drop a bomb on it regardless of collateral damage and their decisions are mostly driven by reports from members or guilt by bot. I was a top 100 reviewer once, until Amazon decided to address it's problem with fake reviewers coming in from Fiverr. Suddenly my well thought out product reviews complete with photos and video of products I purchased were all deleted and I was banned from ever reviewing again. Amazon refused to respond to any of my inquiries. As far as they were concerned, I left too many reviews during the 20+ years I've been a member and therefore was the same as the ESL shills who left "good products I like" reviews. No recourse, no inquiry. The only responses I ever got were from the automated mail bot. SO, while I agree the people who bought out entire towns of toilet paper and then tried to flip it on Amazon deserve a stick in the eye, Amazon will likely suspend a lot of innocent folks who got reported for pandemic gouging by Karens eager to feel like they've "done something".
The suspensions of accounts came after a letter from Congressional lawmakers to Federal Trade Commission Chairman Joseph Simons called for investigations into reports of price gouging.
So close up shop and open up as a different sell. Always have the highest price. Granted, you don't have much in sales during the easy times but you will have stock, a consistent price point when the panic begins. Can't call you a gouger if your prices remain stable.
Most anti-price gouging laws cause more harm than good. Or worse they are unconstitutionally vague and the seller can’t know what the law actually is ahead of time. Many states legislate you can’t raise prices an “unconscionable” amount during a declared emergency. How much is unconscionable? Is it 10%, 20%, 23% or 100% or 1000% higher or something else? A seller with stores in two counties could run out of something in high demand, find product 1000 miles away at a much higher cost than his usual source and express ship it. But to make just the same profit margin, assume their price needs to increase 50%. The DA in one county might understand, consider that not unconscionable and be happy the seller was able to address the shortage. But the next county over the DA might think 50% increase is unconscionable and criminally prosecute the seller? Which is it? “Price gouging” is generally a good thing. It reduces hoarding causing those who don’t really need something to not buy and motivates sellers to go to extremes to obtain more to sell. Price gouging, whatever that actually is, in a free market hugely diminishes and in many or most cases eliminates shortages. Some of the anti-price gouging laws virtually guarantee shortages, especially those in states that say you can’t sell things for more than 10% over cost or 10% over average price in previous 30-90 days during times of declared emergencies. Heck, gasoline can fluxuate over 10% just week to week in normal times. Price Gouging Laws by State - FindLaw Non-leftist economists also concur price gouging is basically a good and moral thing. https://fee.org/articles/let-prices-rise-to-combat-the-coronavirus/ If You Hate Empty Store Shelves, You Should Love "Price Gouging" | Anthony Rozmajzl Anti-Price Gouging Legislation Endangers Floridians | Tricia Beck-Peter Texas Price Gougers Are Hurricane Heroes | Daniel J. Mitchell I am fundamentally against price gouging laws, especially as most states write them looking only at the posted price before and after emergency declarations. They pretty much guarantee shortages. I’d rather have the option to buy or not buy something at a high price than have no option to buy at all.
Well, there is always good old fashion 'Black Marketing'...it's been around forever and will be here when we are all ashes and dust. When something is made illegal or in short demand along comes Mr. Black Market to fill those orders. Frankly, we live in the 'Land of the Free' where 'Supply and Demand' and 'Boom and Bust' are common everyday words to go along with our good ole fashion Capitalism - so - IMHO if some fool is willing to pay $5 for a roll of toilet paper or a N95 mask - good luck to them. And, I hope seller and buyer are both happy with the exchange. EDIT: My grandmother had a saying of which she was fond, "A fool and his money is soon parted."
But we didn't have fake news bots and troll farms 20 years ago. Yeah amazon would make the top ten list for biggest virtue signalers.
