Amazon has agreed to settle a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit accusing the e-commerce giants of tricking customers into signing up for Prime and then making it frustratingly hard to cancel.
In a press release Thursday, the FTC confirmed that, pending court approval, Amazon will pay a $1 billion civil penalty and provide $1.5 billion in refunds to an estimated 35 million customers "harmed by their deceptive Prime enrollment practices."
The civil penalty, the FTC noted, is "the largest ever in a case involving an FTC rule violation," and the refunds to customers are "the second-highest restitution award ever obtained by FTC action."
Amazon also agreed to stop "unlawful enrollment and cancellation practices for Prime," meaning it will soon be easier than ever to unsubscribe.
The FTC sp