CANBERRA — Australia’s consumer watchdog has launched a major lawsuit against tech giant Amazon’s Australian unit, alleging the company buried unfair terms in its standard-form contracts to force a highly lucrative, global pivot toward streaming advertisements.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) filed the case in the Federal Court, asserting that Amazon Commercial Services Pty Ltd (Amazon AU) compromised the rights of over one million annual Prime subscribers. The regulator argues that consumers were effectively locked into contracts where the service they originally paid for was unilaterally degraded without offering any path to a refund.
The Bait-and-Switch Allegation
The crux of the enforcement action traces back to July 2024, when Amazon officially altered its Prime Video platform across Australia. Prior to that date, the streaming service was almost entirely ad-free.
Following the policy shift, annual members—who had already shelled out an upfront fee of AU$79 ($54.40)—were hit with a mandatory ultimatum: accept integrated commercial interruptions mid-stream, or pay a premium of AU$2.99 per month to restore the ad-free experience.