1. Amazon breached competition law

According to a proposed claim, Amazon violated EU and UK competition law, causing customers to pay higher prices. Consumer advocate Julie Hunter is leading this case and has claimed that products sold on Amazon website and the Amazon app obscured better-value deals. More than 80% of site purchases are made through featured offers in the “buy box.” Ms Hunter, on the other hand, claims that independent sellers are excluded from the buy box offer even when they offer the same product at a lower price or on better terms, thus in violation of UK and EU competition law. According to Ms Hunter, this featured offer is the only one considered and chosen by the vast majority of users, many of whom trust Amazon and mistakenly believe it is the best deal. The legal action, which will be filed in the Competition Appeal Tribunal in London, will seek £900 million in damages from Amazon. 

2. Cyber Resilience Act 

In mid-September, the European Commission proposed the Cyber Resilience Act, which would require stronger cybersecurity safeguards for IoT devices. In particular, connected device manufacturers would be required to notify authorities and customers alike in the event of a cyberattack and respond quickly to incidents. The law would be the EU’s first cybersecurity regulation for the IoT industry. It is estimated to be worth nearly €1.5 trillion by the proposal. If the bill passes, it will have ramifications for multinational corporations operating in the EU. The proposed legislation is intended to combat cybercrime, which is estimated to cost €5.5 trillion per year worldwide by 2021 by a European Commission impact assessment. If passed, the law would go into effect in 2024, giving businesses enough time to adjust to the new rules. However, the government will need to put in place the necessary infrastructure to help ensure compliance. 

3. Netflix reported better-than-expected results. 

This month, Netflix reported better-than-expected results. Netflix’s most recent projects helped it add over 2.4 million subscribers in the last quarter, increasing its revenue and profit to easily outperform analysts’ expectations. Since Netflix predicted even more growth this quarter, it persuaded investors to overlook the company’s lower-than-expected profit forecast as its shares rose 14% following their announcement. Netflix will want to maintain its subscriber growth, so they have decided to downgrade the user experience by launching an ad-supported service next month. The $6.99 version, which includes about five minutes of commercials for every hour of content, will appeal to consumers looking for low-cost entertainment who cannot get the same deal from competitors Disney+ or HBO Max. According to some analysts, this could generate an additional $3 billion in revenue for Netflix by 2025. 

4. UK retail sales have fallen significantly in September 

Retail sales in the United Kingdom fell more than expected in September. Retail sales in the United Kingdom fell 1.4% in September compared to August, nearly three times the 0.5% expected. The main reason for this sharp drop is that people are cutting back on their spending as prices rise. In fact, 41% of all motorists avoided non-essential trips due to high fuel prices in September, and online shopping and food store sales were down 3% and nearly 2%, respectively. Overall, sales volumes are 10% lower than they were before the pandemic. 

By Fizah Jathol