FTC said to be probing Amazon-Apple deal

A deal between Amazon and Apple billed as a way to prevent the sale of counterfeit iPhones and other products is reportedly under investigation by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in the US.

The regulator wants to establish whether legitimate sellers have been barred from selling Apple products on Amazon’s Marketplace platform, even though the items they were listing were genuine, refurbished products, says The Verge. Last year, Apple agreed a deal with Amazon to sell its products directly to consumers via the online retail giant’s websites.

The question at hand is whether the deal has effectively driven third-party marketplace sellers off Amazon’s platform, which according to some commentators would be illegal under antitrust laws.