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Contents12
  1. Consumer impact summary
  2. Incidents
  3. Products
  4. Amazon Kindle (2007–Present)
  5. Amazon PhotosPlus (2023–2024)
  6. Amazon Prime (2005–Present)
  7. Amazon Appstore (2011–Present)
  8. Amazon Luna (2020—2026)
  9. Amazon Echo (2014–Present)
  10. Amazon Alexa (2013–Present)
  11. All Louis Rossmann videos covering Amazon
  12. References
Amazon
Basic information
Founded 1994
Legal Structure Public
Industry Technology
Also known as
Official website https://amazon.com/

Amazon.com, Inc. is a global leader in e-commerce, cloud computing, and digital streaming founded in 1994 by Jeff Bezos. Originally launched as an online bookstore, Amazon quickly expanded into a marketplace offering a wide range of products, including - but not limited to - electronics, clothing, household goods, and groceries. Today, it is one of the largest companies in the world, with a dominant presence in retail, technology, and logistics.

In addition to its e-commerce platform, Amazon is a major player in cloud computing through Amazon Web Services (AWS), which provides cloud infrastructure and services to businesses globally. The company also offers a variety of digital services, such as Amazon Prime - which provides streaming video and music - and Alexa; its voice-activated virtual assistant. Amazon has also developed consumer products like the Kindle e-reader, Fire tablets, and Echo smart speakers.

Amazon has faced significant scrutiny and criticism, particularly concerning its treatment of workers, marketplace practices, data privacy issues, and its impact on small businesses. It has been involved in various regulatory and legal challenges related to anti-competitive behavior, safety, and consumer protection, with calls for increased oversight on its business operations.

Consumer impact summary

Overview of concerns that arise from the conduct towards users of the product (if applicable):

  • User Freedom
  • User Privacy
  • Business Model
  • Market Control

Add your text below this box. Once this section is complete, delete this box by clicking on it and pressing backspace.


Business model

Amazon gets a majority of its revenue from seller fees and Amazon Prime memberships. In addition, Amazon has a "subscribe and save" option for some products. With this, the page to manage these subscriptions is obfuscated for the user, intentional or not.

  • No "subscribe and save" option available.
    No "subscribe and save" option available.
  • The option appears in the "buy again" section.
    The option appears in the "buy again" section.

Incidents

This is a list of all consumer protection incidents related to this company. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the Amazon category.

Controversy Year Background info Aftermath Related article Related video(s)
Amazon increases the price to not see ads 2026 "...on April 10, 2026, Prime Video Ad Free will become Prime Video Ultra with enhanced viewing features, and your subscription price will increase to $4.99/month.

... From 04-14-2026, your subscription will automatically renew at $4.99/month, unless you cancel."

The price to not see ads in Prime Video will be increased. The users are notified by email that the subscription price is increased automatically unless extra action is taken. http://aboutamazon.com/news/entertainment/prime-video-ultra-ad-free-streaming-subscription
Amazon removing kindle books from old devices. 2025 As of May 26, 2025 Kindle for Android app versions released prior to March 2022 (v8.51 or earlier) no longer support Kindle content downloads. Old android devices (such as Galaxy Tab 4) that are not compatible with Android OS v.9.0+ are no longer able to download Kindle ebooks. Furthermore, Amazon 'forcibly' removed any ebooks downloaded to the kindle app on those devices the next time they connected to the internet, without warning that this would occur. https://www.androidauthority.com/kindle-app-drm-loophole-3554844/
Amazon removing ability to download Kindle books 2025 Starting on February 26, 2025, Amazon removed a feature from its website allowing users to download purchased books to a computer and then copy them manually to a Kindle over USB. Starting February 26, 2025, the ‘Download & Transfer via USB’ option will no longer be available. Amazon Kindle removes download feature of purchased books Amazon are changing the way you own your Kindle books - you have 10 days to react

[Video References 1]

Amazon Fresh/Go Stores

(Convenience & Grocery Brick and Mortar Stores)

2024 Revealed in 2024, Amazon's convenience stores powered by "AI" is really just human contractors from India watching people shop. Amazon Abandons Grocery Stores Where You Just Walk Out With Stuff After It Turns Out Its “AI” Was Powered by 1,000 Human Contractors
Amazon sells lethal litterboxes 2024 Amazon sold knockoffs of Whisker brand "Litter-Robot" litterboxes that were designed in a unsafe way that led to the deaths of multiple cats, and posed a danger to young children. The responsible knockoff product was delisted, yet many other variants of the same product exist on the site. [Video References 2]
Amazon adds ads to premium subscription 2023 – Present Amazon added advertisements to previously ad free subscriptions for Prime Video and Echo Show frames. Continues to occur. [Video References 3] [Video References 4] [Video References 5]
Amazon allows fraudulent listings 2014 – Present Fraudulent listings continue to be added, some removed. Amazon allows fraudulent product page after manual review [Video References 6] [Video References 7] [Video References 8] [Video References 9] [Video References 10] [Video References 11] [Video References 12] [Video References 13]
Amazon allows sellers to bribe customers for better ratings 2016 – Present Amazon sellers give customers gift cards in exchange for positive product reviews; Amazon does nothing to stop this. Continues to occur. Amazon's history of seller bribery [Video References 14]
Amazon has bad marketplace algorithms 2023 – Present Algorithms still seem to be nonbeneficial. [Video References 15]
Amazon trashes refurbished market 2022 – 2023 Unknown [Video References 16] [Video References 17]
Amazon cancels associate account after recent negative media coverage, with a different reason 2023 Unknown [Video References 18]
Amazon wrongfully suspends account of home owner 2023 A home owner was locked out of their Amazon account for nearly a week, after a delivery driver from Amazon misheard an automated message from their Eufy doorbell. Account reinstated. Amazon locks home owner out of amazon account over allegation by amazon delivery driver [Video References 19] [Video References 20]
Amazon engages in anticompetitive behavior 2021 – 2022 Unknown [Video References 21] [Video References 22]
Amazon sells fake electrical fuses 2023 – Present Fuses are being sold that do not blow when supplied more power than it is intended to handle, which is a major safety risk. These fuses are still being sold to this day. Amazon allows fraudulent product page after manual review! Deep dive on Amazons support of scams [Video References 23]
Amazon PhotosPlus discontinuation 2024 Since September 2024, it is no longer possible to use the Amazon Echo Show 8 as a digital frame without advertisements. Amazon PhotosPlus discontinuation
Amazon uses dark patterns for its premium subscription 2023 – Present Systematically designing the cancelling steps to be complicated and long; using tricks to enroll users into the subscription.[1] See "Project Illiad". Continues to occur.
Amazon removes option to lend Kindle e-books 2022 E-books marked with "lending enabled" could be lent to other Kindle users for a period of time during which the title is unavailable to the sender. Since August 2022, it is not possible to borrow Kindle books. Amazon Discontinues Lending Kindle e-Books
Amazon removes option not to send voice recordings from Echo devices 2025 In March 2025, Echo customers with the option "Do Not Send Voice Recordings" enabled received an e-mail that local processing will no longer be supported on their device.[2] Amazon Echo changes terms of voice usage
Amazon discontinues Appstore for Android devices 2025 On August 20, 2025, Amazon will remove Android devices' access to the Amazon Appstore. Android apps downloaded through the Amazon Appstore will cease to function. Amazon pulls the plug on its Android app store that you never used anyway
Amazon removes kindle books from user libraries. 2009 In 2009, Amazon removed 2 illegally published books, Animal Farm and 1984, from sale and user libraries, along with any notes and annotations made by the reader. Others have also reported missing books from their libraries. Those affected have been given refunds and there haven't been any further documented cases of books being removed from readers' libraries, although user reports are still prevalent.[3] Amazon Erases Orwell Books From Kindle
Amazon purposely delays assisting customers with lost packages 2025 Amazon has been found delaying assistance to customers who contact customer service to report issues with a order (i.e., a missing package). Amazon states they are unable to take any action until a certain date, delaying the resolution process further in hopes the customer will not contact them again to request a refund. Unknown
Amazon adds ads on the lockscreen's of Amazon Fire Tablets & Amazon Kindle 2012 - Present Amazon shows ads on both the Kindle & Fire Tablets lockscreen's to get money out of your purchases makes you pay a fee to remove them. This only applies to the cheaper models. This practice still occurs, but is very easy to remove through a quick search. Fire Toolbox

Learn More About Ads On Kindle Fire and Fire Tablet - Amazon

Amazon ends support for Fire TV Blaster's making them unusable 2026 Amazon ends support for the Fire TV Blaster on January 31, 2026 Amazon makes Fire TV Blaster's unusable
Amazon cancels order, and requiring age verification to reorder 2026 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKDpMel08LM
Amazon Luna removes access to purchased games, offers no refunds 2026 Starting April 10, 2026, Amazon Luna ceased offering individual game purchases and third-party subscriptions (EA, Ubisoft+, GOG, Jackbox). The "Bring Your Own Library" feature, allowing users to stream games from linked accounts on Luna, was also removed. Purchased games remain playable via streaming only until June 10, 2026, after which they become inaccessible on Luna. Amazon explicitly stated it will not offer refunds for a-la-carte game purchases, contrasting with Google's full-refund policy when it shut down Stadia. Amazon offered Luna Premium subscriptions only to "qualifying" users. Amazon Luna axes third Party game purchases

Amazon's Game streaming service removing access to Purchased Games And Offering no refunds

Amazon Luna in its demise is slowly killing game purchases

Amazon Luna purchased games will be unplayable After June 2026

Products

Amazon Kindle (2007–Present)

Amazon has progressively removed options for products purchased through the Kindle, effectively changing the meaning of purchases and ownership. It first removed the ability of users to lend e-books to one another, and later removed the ability to download purchased e-books to a computer.

Amazon PhotosPlus (2023–2024)

Amazon sold physical devices that could displaying photos stored in its Amazon Photos cloud storage through its PhotosPlus service. Less than one year later, it cancelled the service, which changed the functionality of the devices, including showing advertisements every few hours.[4]

Amazon Prime (2005–Present)

Amazon uses dark patterns for its subscription services, including tricking users into subscribing and making it very complicated to cancel. Moreover, some features of the service, such as free deliveries, are region locked to where you initially subscribed, forcing you to buy another subscription to be able to use the service.[5][6]

Prime video further only allows for HD streaming on Windows and MacOS, despite streaming services such as Netflix allowing HD streaming on Linux [7].

Amazon Appstore (2011–Present)

Amazon Appstore is the primary app store for Amazon's Fire devices, and is also available on other Android devices. On August 20, 2025, Amazon has removed access to the app store for all non-Fire devices. Apps installed on non-Fire devices from the Amazon Appstore have ceased to function but Fire devices are still to be able to access the Amazon Appstore.[8][9] There was no restitution for non-Fire users who may have purchased paid apps through the Amazon Appstore.[10][11][12]

Amazon Luna (2020—2026)

Amazon Luna is Amazon's cloud gaming service, launched in 2020 as a competitor to Xbox Cloud Gaming and Google Stadia. In April 2026, Amazon abruptly ended support for individual game purchases and third-party storefronts including EA, GOG, and Ubisoft, stripping the platform of its "own your games" model. Previously purchased games will be rendered unplayable via Luna as of June 10, 2026, with no refunds offered. Save-game data can be downloaded until September 8th, 2026.

Amazon is switching to a subscription model called Luna Premium, which does not allow purchases of individual video games.

Support article: https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=TY9Z4zZ7vgVwLA0b7C

Amazon Echo (2014–Present)

Amazon Alexa (2013–Present)

On July 1st 2024, Amazon removed 3rd party list support from the Alexa service, resulting in only lists hosted by Amazon being supported[13]. While it is still possible to manage lists via Alexa skills, these now require the skill activation phrase to be used (e.g. "Alexa, ask AnyList to add XYZ to my shopping list"). This followed from a similar move by Google in 2023.

Sometime in 2025 Amazon added an upgrade nag widget to Alexa for "Alexa+" that is impossible to turn off. In some cases the upgrade was automatic, and users had to opt-out[14]

All Louis Rossmann videos covering Amazon

  1. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (18 Feb 2025). "Amazon revokes the concept of owning books, can edit books you already bought; PIRACY IS THE ANSWER!". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  2. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (10 Sep 2024). "Amazon litterbox fatally harms cat; this is the sad end result of what I've talked about all year :(". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  3. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (26 Aug 2024). "Amazon charges extra to avoid ads, says "lol jk" & adds them anyway". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  4. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (2 May 2024). "Amazon Hikes Profits by Forcing Ads on PAID Prime Subscribers". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  5. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (28 Dec 2023). "Ads on Amazon Prime Video: Paying More for Less? 😒". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  6. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (5 Aug 2024). "Amazon allows fraudulent product page after manual review! Deep dive on Amazon's support of scams". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  7. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (14 Jan 2024). "Amazon's Reckless Bet: Hazardous Items Unfazed by Viral Scare". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  8. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (30 Dec 2023). "Amazon Sells Fake Electrical Fuses". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  9. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (21 Dec 2023). "Amazon's Illusion of Quality: How Dangerous Products Get Top Ratings!". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  10. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (16 Dec 2023). "Amazon Sells Dangerous Electrical Crimps". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  11. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (5 Aug 2023). "Amazon sells EOL devices as new after banning independents for quality control 🤣". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  12. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (24 Feb 2022). "Amazon has a credibility problem brewing". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  13. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (24 Apr 2014). "Group Vertical eBay/Amazon Macbook screens are garbage; see for yourself!". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  14. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (16 Jul 2024). "Amazon sellers bribe customers for good reviews; Amazon does nothing". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  15. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (4 Jan 2024). "Beyond Algorithms: Why Amazon's Automated Systems Fail Sellers & Customers". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  16. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (18 Jul 2023). "Apple & Amazon pay a fine for trashing the refurbished market". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  17. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (8 Sep 2022). "eBay follows amazon's lead, consolidating & destroying the refurbished marketplace". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  18. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (22 Jun 2023). "Amazon cancelled my account after exposing their wrongful lockout of a paying customer". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  19. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (18 Jun 2023). "Man locked out of amazon account over his doorbell gets account back, but no apology". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  20. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (12 Jun 2023). "Amazon accuses customer of racism & shuts down their smart home - enough cloud junk". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  21. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (18 Sep 2022). "Amazon forces sellers to keep prices high on other platforms". Youtube. Archived from the original on 21 Nov 2025.
  22. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (15 Feb 2026). "Amazon copying products/rigging search results". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.
  23. ↑ Rossmann, Louis (30 Dec 2023). "Amazon Sells Fake Electrical Fuses". Youtube. Archived from the original on 15 Feb 2026.

References

  1. ↑ "FTC Takes Action Against Amazon for Enrolling Consumers in Amazon Prime Without Consent and Sabotaging Their Attempts to Cancel". Federal Trade Commission. 2023-06-21. Archived from the original on 2025-01-29.
  2. ↑ "TechLinked – Microsoft's Big Oopsie – Echo voice recordings, Gemini watermarks". YouTube – TechLinked. 2025-03-18. Archived from the original on 2025-03-18. Retrieved 2025-03-18.
  3. ↑ A, Georgie (13 Nov 2022). "Bought books removed by Amazon". Amazon. Archived from the original on 13 Aug 2025. Retrieved 12 Aug 2025.
  4. ↑ Roth, Emma (21 Aug 2024). "Amazon cancels the Echo Show 8 Photos Edition's main feature — focusing on photos". The Verge. Archived from the original on 16 Dec 2025. Retrieved 4 Apr 2025.
  5. ↑ "Geo-blocking". Wikipedia. Archived from the original on 2026-03-25. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
  6. ↑ Mabood, Wasay (2023-02-22). "Geo-block Content Using Amazon Location and Edge Services". Amazon Web Services (AWS). Archived from the original on 2026-04-15. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
  7. ↑ "Prime Video System Requirements for Computers". Archived from the original on 2026-02-14.
  8. ↑ Doffman, Zak (17 Aug 2025). "Amazon's App Store Deadline—Stop Using Your Apps In 48 Hours". Forbes. Archived from the original on 22 Nov 2025. Retrieved 30 Nov 2025.
  9. ↑ Ravi, Nandika (20 Feb 2025). "Amazon will suspend support for its Appstore on Android". Android Central. Archived from the original on 22 Feb 2026. Retrieved 30 Nov 2025.
  10. ↑ "Amazon Appstore on Android has been discontinued". Amazon.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ↑ Maruccia, Alfonso (2025-02-21). "Amazon pulls the plug on its Android app store after 14 years". TECHSPOT.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. ↑ Powel, James (2025-08-17). "The Amazon Appstore shuts down on Androids Aug. 20. Will you get a refund?". AOL / USA Today.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  13. ↑ "Deprecated Features". Amazon Developer Documentation. Archived from the original on 2025-05-22. Retrieved 2025-09-16.
  14. ↑ Campbell-Hicks, Jennifer (2026-01-13). "Amazon is automatically upgrading Prime members to Alexa+. Here's how to opt out". 12news. Archived from the original on 2026-04-15.
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