It turns out that Amazon was threatening sellers by saying, 'Don't sell things cheaper than us on Temu'
Amazon, which is worried about the rise of competing platforms from China, such as the release of the ultra-low-price store '
Amazon asks Chinese sellers not to offer cheaper prices on Temu | South China Morning Post
https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3292130/amazon-asks-chinese-sellers-not-offer-cheaper-prices-temu
The Hong Kong daily English-language newspaper South China Morning Post reported on December 24, 2024 that 'Amazon's local office in China recently notified managers of some top-selling Chinese brands not to list the same products at lower prices on Temu, according to multiple sellers.'
Amazon is said to closely track Temu's product prices, and one seller, who spoke anonymously for fear of retaliation, said that if they set a higher price for a product on Amazon than Temu, it would be removed from Amazon's ' Featured Products ' list.
On the marketplace pages where external sellers sell products on Amazon, there is a space called the 'Buy Box' (in Japan, the Shopping Buy Box), and sellers who have won the Buy Box are prominently displayed near 'Add to Cart' and 'Buy Now'. However, if they are no longer eligible for the Recommended Products Program, they will not be able to win the Buy Box, which could dramatically reduce the chances of being selected by shoppers, making this a matter of life and death for sellers.
Amazon says that the condition for eligibility for the Featured Products program is to 'price competitively,' which means 'selling at or below the lowest price offered by major retailers other than Amazon,' the South China Morning Post noted.
Meanwhile, an Amazon representative said, 'Sellers set their own prices for products in the Amazon store based on their own selling strategies, and Amazon does not require sellers to set specific prices. In addition to being competitively priced, we highlight products that we believe customers would choose after a thorough comparison of all options.'
An employee of a Chinese brand that sells on Amazon said hundreds of its products were removed from the Recommended Products program within three days because their prices were higher than a benchmark that Amazon apparently determined based on Temu's prices.
To avoid further penalties, the seller changed photos of his Temu listings, but it's unclear if that has been effective.
'We support fair and open competition that benefits consumers. If sellers can sell their products on different platforms and offer a better and more diverse selection, that's valuable to consumers,' said a Temu representative.
Anker, a maker of charging accessories and mobile batteries, has reportedly withdrawn from Temu, with the growing view that this is due to Amazon's pressure on Chinese companies.
On Temu's US marketplace, the official Anker store had over 40 products, but since December 23, 2024, it has not listed anything, and the last customer review was dated December 22. Another US Anker store that sold refurbished products on Temu has also been closed. However, Anker's German store has continued to operate on Temu since then, with 18 products listed.
Anker did not respond to a request for comment from the South China Morning Post.
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