Amazon faces a class action lawsuit in the UK for abusing its algorithm: hiding better deals to increase exposure to its products

According to foreign media reports, Amazon is facing a class action lawsuit in the UK accused of using "secret" algorithms to abuse its dominant position in the online market.

It is reported that Hausfeld, the law firm in charge of the case, claimed that Amazon increased the exposure of its products by using a "secret and self-interested algorithm" in its Buy Box function to hide more favorable deals, thus making millions of customers pay higher prices. Hausfeld said that according to economists' estimates, the potential loss to consumers could be as high as 900 million pounds.

Lesley hanna, a lawyer at law firm Hausfeld, said Amazon was banned from using its users in this anti-competitive manner in the UK.

It is reported that the lawsuit against Amazon will be submitted to the Competition Appeals Court by October 31.

In addition, Amazon's Buy Box functional algorithm faces antitrust scrutiny elsewhere. The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is also investigating anti-competitive behaviour related to the Buy Box function.