Overview
- The Seattle federal jury trial has begun, with a nine-person panel weighing potential penalties and refunds that could reach into the billions.
- The FTC alleges tens of millions of improper enrollments in automatically renewing Prime subscriptions, citing a yearslong use of deceptive design tactics.
- At issue is the so‑called “Iliad Flow,” a four‑page, six‑click, fifteen‑option cancellation path in which only specific choices, such as “End Now,” actually terminated membership.
- Leaked internal documents reported previously indicated the Iliad Flow reduced Prime cancellations by 14% in 2017, supporting claims the design was optimized to curb churn.
- The court signaled possible individual liability for senior leaders if the FTC proves its case, while Amazon denies wrongdoing and calls its sign‑up and cancellation flows lawful and straightforward.