Lead
Australia's competition watchdog has taken Amazon's Australian unit to court, alleging that its Prime subscription contracts contained unfair terms that allowed the company to add advertising to its video streaming platform. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) claims that between November 2023 and August 2025, Amazon Australia used five unfair contract terms with more than one million annual subscribers to make materially adverse changes without offering compensation.
ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said consumers were "left with no choice but to pay more" to maintain the service they had initially signed up for. "We allege that Amazon AU included multiple unfair terms in its contracts with Australian annual Prime subscribers, and it then relied on some of these terms to bring ads onto Amazon Prime Video," Ms. Cass-Gottlieb said.
Coverage Comparison
Multiple outlets reported on the ACCC's action, with some variations in detail. The ABC highlighted that the ACCC is taking legal action over unfair contract terms, emphasizing that the introduction of ads in July 2024 forced subscribers to pay an additional A$2.99 per month to keep their streaming ad-free. The BBC framed the story in the context of consumer protection and noted that Amazon had previously faced government scrutiny in the US and UK over its treatment of users. The South China Morning Post focused on the regulatory action, also noting the additional fee and the ACCC's pursuit of declarations, penalties, consumer redress, costs, and other orders.
One point of discrepancy exists over the timing of the ad introduction. The ABC reported that ads were introduced in July 2024, while the BBC indicated the rollout began globally in early 2024. Both accounts agree that subscribers were required to pay an extra fee to avoid ads, but the exact timing is not consistent across all reports.
Key Claims
- The ACCC alleges that Amazon Australia included five unfair terms in contracts with annual Prime subscribers, allowing the company to make unilateral changes between November 2023 and August 2025.
- The regulator contends that Amazon relied on these terms when it introduced ads to Prime Video in July 2024, requiring subscribers to pay an extra A$2.99 per month to remain ad-free.
- ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said consumers who wanted to avoid ads were "left with no choice but to pay more."
- The ACCC also alleges that Amazon.com Services was knowingly concerned in the Australian unit's conduct and was involved in drafting the Australian contracts containing the unfair terms.
- The regulator is seeking declarations, penalties, consumer redress, costs, and other orders.
- According to the ACCC, over 850,000 people in Australia had already paid for a year's worth of Prime service when ads were introduced.