Washington, D.C. — TechNet, the national, bipartisan network of tech CEOs and senior executives, submitted comments from Senior Vice President of Federal Policy and Government Relations Mike Ward on the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) proposed enforcement policy statement on personalized pricing, raising concern that the commission acted without a mandate from Congress and offering recommendations to prevent consumers from losing the benefits of innovative pricing systems. Ward stated:
“TechNet shares the commission’s goal of fair and transparent prices for every American. Our recommendations offer a better path to target real consumer harm while still encouraging practices that provide value for consumers.”
In the comment letter, Ward questioned the commission’s decision to propose an enforcement policy statement given its limited understanding of the practice — as it has admitted — and that Congress has not authorized regulation in this space. In the event that the FTC proceeds with this approach, he recommended that the commission engage in further study of the applications of personalized pricing in the economy, draw clear distinctions between deceptive and pro-consumer practices, and provide flexible compliance guidelines, among others.
Specifically, TechNet’s recommendations for refining the FTC’s proposed enforcement policy statement include:
- Distinguishing price increases from price decreases, and exempting routine pro-consumer promotions like coupons, loyalty rewards, and win-back offers;
- Defining key terms and providing an administrable test, while excluding cost- and context-based practices such as geographic, supply-and-demand, and cohort-based pricing;
- Keeping compliance flexible by allowing standard disclosure mechanisms, such as privacy statements;
- Deferring to existing federal and state frameworks for data privacy and reporting; and
- Placing liability on the party that actually sets the price rather than on platforms, software providers, or marketplaces that merely supply pricing tools or host independent sellers.