Amazon in deal with German watchdog to overhaul marketplace terms

Amazon has reached a deal with Germany’s anti-trust authority to overhaul its terms of service for third-party merchants, who had complained of unfair treatment when selling through the world’s biggest online retailer. The Federal Cartel Office said on Wednesday it was dropping a seven-month investigation after the U.S. e-commerce giant agreed to amend its Business Services Agreement that applies to merchants using its platform. It added the changes, to take effect in 30 days, would apply not only to Germany, Amazon’s No. 2 market after the United States, but also to its country sites in Britain, France, Italy and Spain, as well as “in America and Asia.”

“We have achieved far-reaching improvements for retailers on Amazon’s marketplaces,” cartel office chief Andreas Mundt said in a statement. “We are dropping our investigation.” Responding, Amazon said the changes to its Business Solutions Agreement would clarify the rights and responsibilities of selling partners that account for 58% of physical merchandise sales on its platform.