FTC Files Suit Against Amazon For In-App Purchases 47
Charliemopps writes The Federal Trade Commission has filed suit against Amazon for illegally billing parents for in-app purchases of digital goods prior to requiring a password for making purchases. "The FTC's complaint, filed Thursday, asks the court to force Amazon to refund the money to those customers. In-app purchases typically involve virtual goods bought within an app, like extra coins or energy in a game, according to the FTC. Some bills totaled hundreds of dollars, and some virtual goods cost as much as $99.99." We recently told you about Amazon's refusal to reach a settlement over these FTC complaints.
about time (Score:1)
Re: (Score:1)
I really know nothing about how Amazon works internally, so perhaps you can enlighten me.
If it is as dysfunctional as you say it is, how do they manage to do such great things with software? How do they manage to create their website? How do they manage to operate such a huge warehousing and logistics operation? How do they manage to create AWS, which itself hosts so many other significant web properties?
Re:about time (Score:4, Interesting)
He only claimed that they paid no attention to user experience, not that they're shoddy at engineering things. The examples you provided actually demonstrate that point.
For instance, I read a few years back about how Bezos had then-recently hired designers to redo the website since its design seems like an over-crowded holdover from the '90s, before disregarding their ideas entirely because he couldn't bear to be without all of the stuff that's currently packed in. Likewise, their software for the Kindle Fire line can do some really neat stuff, but everything I've heard and seen indicates that it's sub-par from an experience perspective (e.g. unresponsive/laggy UI, inconsistent app designs/flows, disregard for common and obvious use cases). As for AWS and logistics, what of them? Logistics is entirely internal, while AWS isn't aimed at end users at all.
They can and do make cool stuff that's well-engineered, but there's a big difference between good engineering and good design. I, and I believe the OP, are accusing them of lacking the latter when it comes to their consumer-facing endeavors. Pretty much everything about Amazon feels like a cheap commodity, which is fine when I want cheap cables from their Amazon Basics line that I'll plug in once and never touch again, but isn't so good when it's something I'm interacting with on a daily basis, such as their site.
Re: (Score:2)
All that needs to be said is to compare woot.com after it's been taken over by Amazon with the new site the Woot founder started up - meh.com (yes, it's called meh).
Hell, if you remember woot's website before the takeover, it bears a closer resemblance to meh than today.
As for Amazon's awful ToS? Amazon is Apple-lite. They have an approval system just like Apple, and that's where Amazon's value-add is.
Remember how we keep asking for someone to do a curated app store to help get rid of the iffier apps found
So called "designers" (Score:1)
I read a few years back about how Bezos had then-recently hired designers to redo the website since its design seems like an over-crowded holdover from the '90s, before disregarding their ideas entirely...
In all likelihood we should thank our lucky stars he did. There are Designers and then there are "designers". "Designers" unfortunately seem to value aesthetics well above all else, including usability. They are art school grads without any particular skill with engineering or and they appear to have slept through usability training. The interfaces I'm seeing lately tend to hide functionality that should not be hidden even when that makes it less pretty. I don't care if an interface is ugly if it maxim
Re: (Score:1)
The real dummies in this are of course the parents who handed out devices that had the credit card information stored on record, or even worse, gave their kids the credit cards when prompted. When I tried that shit back in the late '90s I got my computer privileges revoked for a month.
Re: (Score:1, Informative)
I really know nothing about how Amazon works internally, so perhaps you can enlighten me.
how do they manage to do such great things with software?
By ripping off Android for their mobile platform and then screwing developers [shiftyjelly.com] who sign their awful agreement [readwrite.com]?
How do they manage to operate such a huge warehousing and logistics operation?
By allegedly exploiting [huffingtonpost.com] and shorting [reuters.com] their employees and having soulless [fastcodesign.com] fulfillment centers/neo-sweatshops [salon.com]?
Re: (Score:2)
If it is as dysfunctional as you say it is, how do they manage to do such great things with software?
In the Amazon.com warehouse that I worked in the tools we all worked with were written in Perl.
Re: (Score:3)
It's also time they address the infamous one-click buying button, which is basically the same thing.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
they're not real and have no constitutional authority
You're not real and have no constitutional authority!
Now now children, there's enough constitutional authority out there for everyone. :D
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Don't they have this right under the "Commerce Clause". [which is indeed known to have been abused, but still]
Your opinion, publicly stated, might negatively affect commerce, which could have ripple effects in the economy of another state. Ergo, your ability to state your opinion publicly is regulable under the commerce clause. Don't worry: you're free to express your ideas in your mind, so long as you do not communicate them to anyone else in any form.
This line of reasoning is consistent with the Supreme Court's ruling in Gonzalez v Raich, Wickard v Filburn, et al.
The Commerce Clause has been blatantly twisted int
Re: (Score:2)
Failing to learn from history? (Score:2)
Didn't Apple go through this exact same issue with the iPhone app store a few years ago, and they fixed it?
Re:Failing to learn from history? (Score:5, Informative)
They knew what they were doing, and they also know only a given percentage of those affected will ever seek damages.
If X is less than the cost of a recall, we don't do one.
apple system needed an password for free apps (Score:2)
apple system needed an password for free apps the same one used to buy stuff also IOS used to have the 15 min no password needed time.
Why not have so there is a pin to buy stuff / setup it to only ask for a password to buy stuff and it's not needed for free stuff?
Re: (Score:3)
The companies (and I do hate Amazon and pretty much all the other monopolies in this country) should also use common sense knowing you have idiots that lack any sense to better protect your company.
If you think it differently, you would see that common sense is not equal to profit. Big corporations (or any of those who are out to make more money) do try any business practice and hope they can get away with. In this case, they have a certain level of expectation on parents' to be able to foresee what their kids are going to do. They try to push the responsibility on parents and exploit the loop hole in order to get away with their business practice. So why do they care for common sense that many paren
Re: (Score:2)
Didn't Apple go through this exact same issue with the iPhone app store a few years ago, and they fixed it?
Yes, your absolutely right.
A pattern is beginning to emerge where the enforcement of laws has transformed into the institutionalized funding of government with punitive measures that neither protect the consumer nor discourage future violation of ethics and common decency. Is this regulatory befuddlement really working for Americans if the evil corporate behavior is not deterred? I am glad some folks are paying attention and remember the relevant recent events so that we may become angry villagers and
Where is section 5? (Score:5, Informative)
Here is the complaint in PDF
http://www.ftc.gov/system/file... [ftc.gov]
It says section 5(a) but I'm having trouble locating section 5.
http://www.law.cornell.edu/usc... [cornell.edu]
Anyone got any ideas where I'm doing it wrong?
Re:Where is section 5? (Score:5, Funny)
Anyone got any ideas where I'm doing it wrong?
You actually attempted to read it.
Re:Where is section 5? (Score:5, Funny)
Anyone got any ideas where I'm doing it wrong?
You need to 30 gems to get the Magic Scroll of Tort and unlock section 5. Best way is to purchase the "LawyerUp Gold" pack for $14.99.
Thank you for playing Crazy Courtroom Saga 3.
Re: (Score:2)
+1 Virtual Mod Point (out today, sorry!), Funny.
Re: (Score:1)
You found it. You can also get it from the Law Revision Counsel at the following: http://uscode.house.gov/
Here is a link to section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act:
http://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=%28title:15%20section:45%20edition:prelim%29%20OR%20%28granuleid:USC-prelim-title15-section45%29&f=treesort&edition=prelim&num=0&jumpTo=true
The reason it says section 45 rather than section 5 is because section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act is not in a positive law title of the
Re: (Score:2)
So section 5 was basically the bills as passed and title 15 section 45 is the act in the US code. Do I have that right?
In that case, they are claiming the entire section 45 as the basis of the illegality which makes some sense. After reading it, I saw several places in which it should apply.
Thanks for the explanation. For a minute there, I thought Amazon would be able to get off on a technicality and the FTC was incompetent or something. Turns out it was just me.
Interesting... (Score:2)
This seems to have implications in that whole free-to-play space. I wonder if anyone is worried about that angle?
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
I can see every app requiring a password and approval for all purchases.
That alone will hurt the model.
Re: (Score:2)
Parental responsibility (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)