The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has ordered information from eight companies that , according to the Associated Press.
In a Tuesday announcement, the FTC said it was seeking to better understand the “opaque market” of “surveillance pricing” practices using consumer data — including credit information, location, and browsing history — to charge different customers different prices for the same goods. To do this, the agency noted, third-party intermediaries claim to use advanced algorithms, artificial intelligence, and other technology.
The FTC said it sent orders to Mastercard, Revionics, Bloomreach, JPMorgan Chase, Task Software, PROS, Accenture, and McKinsey & Co. The agency says it will aim to understand how surveillance pricing works and investigate potential impacts on privacy and consumer protection.
The orders requested information on the “types of surveillance pricing” that each company has produced, developed, or licensed — as well as details on data collection methods, which customers were offered such products or services, and other potential impacts, such as different prices paid, the FTC said.
In a statement sent to The Associated Press Tuesday, Revionics said that it “does not develop software that recommends pricing targeted to specific individuals” — or use individual consumer data “in any manner.”
The software company said its AI price optimization software considers several “market-level factors” to recommend optimal prices, such as historical sales data. Revionics added that its data is often sourced from retail partners — reiterating that it “does not, in any way, conduct operations related to the surveillance of consumers.”
