This Week's Top Amazon Seller News

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This week brought game-changing updates—from a massive FTC settlement to new seller tools, competitive threats, and marketplace shakeups. Here’s what you need to know:
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News

​Takeaways from Amazon’s pitch at its annual conference for third-party sellers​

At Accelerate 2025, Amazon emphasized AI as the centerpiece of its future seller tools, showcasing upgrades like the proactive Seller Assistant for compliance, inventory, and ad support. While flashy AI demos drew attention, sellers gave the loudest applause to the announcement of the end of commingling, reflecting their preference for fixes to long-standing pain points.

Amazon is also pulling many services in-house, offering built-in compliance, ad optimization, and creative tools that could reduce reliance on agencies but potentially disrupt service providers. To encourage product innovation, Amazon introduced tools for spotting opportunities, lowering shipping costs, and streamlining product launches, aiming to ease pressure from rising fees, tariffs, and global competition.

​Amazon to pay $2.5B in FTC settlement over ‘deceptive’ Prime tactics​

Amazon will pay $2.5 billion to settle an FTC lawsuit over allegations it tricked consumers into Prime subscriptions and made cancellations deliberately difficult. The settlement includes $1 billion in civil penalties and $1.5 billion in refunds to around 35 million affected customers.

As part of the deal, Amazon must add a clear opt-out button, fully disclose subscription costs and billing details, and make cancellations as simple as enrollment. For Amazon sellers, this signals growing regulatory pressure on the platform, which could reshape Amazon’s practices and consumer trust going into Q4.

​Amazon Introduces FBA Multi-Unit Fee Discount for Business Orders​

​Vanessa Hung highlights a rare seller-friendly update from Amazon: a fee discount that boosts net proceeds when sellers apply a 3% or greater Business Pricing or Quantity Discount. For multi-unit Business orders, Amazon reduces the per-unit FBA fulfillment fee, often turning small discounts into net profit gains.

This update encourages sellers to drive larger basket sizes, helping Amazon improve efficiency while strengthening seller margins. For Amazon sellers, the key is to strategically adopt Business Pricing and quantity discounts to capture both higher sales velocity and profitability.

​Amazon releases new profit analytics dashboard for sellers​

Amazon has launched a Profit Analytics dashboard giving sellers detailed profitability insights at the SKU, ASIN, and Parent-ASIN level. The tool integrates sales, fees, returns, advertising, and optional off-platform ad spend, providing sellers with a centralized view of net proceeds and costs.

For Amazon sellers, this offers a powerful way to track true profitability and make better decisions about pricing, inventory, and ad budgets. However, many are cautious about sharing sensitive cost and advertising data with Amazon, given its dual role as both marketplace operator and competitor.

​How Alibaba (BABA) Is Trying to Win Over Well-Known Amazon Sellers​

Alibaba is aggressively pushing AliExpress to attract established Amazon brands by offering lower shipping costs and taking a smaller commission than Amazon. The company is also expanding its catalog by bringing global brands alongside domestic T-Mall favorites like Xiaomi and Pop Mart.

For Amazon sellers, this signals growing competition in international markets, especially Europe and Latin America, where AliExpress hopes to gain ground against Amazon, Shein, and Temu. While Alibaba faces tariff challenges and profitability struggles, its incentives could tempt some Amazon sellers to diversify beyond Amazon’s ecosystem.

​Ask an Advisor: I Withdrew $60k and My Medicare Premiums Increased. Will They Go Back Down?​

Withdrawing $60,000 from retirement accounts can trigger higher taxes and Medicare premiums due to IRMAA, but these surcharges are based on income from two years prior—meaning the increase is temporary. Premiums should adjust back down once income falls below the thresholds in future years.

For Amazon sellers, this is a reminder that sudden income spikes—whether from large withdrawals or a profitable sales year—can have ripple effects on taxes and healthcare costs. Strategic planning, like Roth conversions or controlled withdrawals, can help manage both tax exposure and long-term financial efficiency.

​Amazon Sellers Plagued by Unknown Other Fees​

Sellers are reporting unexplained “other” fees on their Amazon accounts, with some charges reaching hundreds of dollars and no clear explanation from Amazon support. While Amazon has acknowledged the issue and says it is under active investigation, sellers are frustrated by the lack of transparency and the difficulty these charges cause for bookkeeping and tax reporting.

Some sellers were told the fees might be tied to USPS adjustments, but details remain unclear even after hours on the phone with Amazon reps. For Amazon sellers, this highlights the importance of monitoring account statements closely and pressing for clear answers when unexpected charges appear.

​Walmart Marketplace Growth Tied to Lax Vetting, Counterfeits, and Stolen Seller Identities​

CNBC’s investigation finds Walmart.com loosened seller and product vetting to fuel marketplace growth, enabling identity-theft storefronts and counterfeit health/beauty goods—some tested and confirmed fake. Walmart says trust and safety are “non-negotiable,” and, after inquiries, began tightening checks in sensitive categories.

For Amazon sellers, this is both a warning and an opportunity: strengthening brand protection and compliance on Amazon can be a competitive edge while rivals battle counterfeit headlines, and cross-listing to Walmart now demands stricter invoice/authorization proof and monitoring. Expect regulators and brands to pressure marketplaces to raise standards—making documentation, authenticity controls, and pricing discipline even more critical for Q4.

​Any Amazon Seller Buying Sponsored Product Ads Can Now Use Amazon’s Clean Room​

Amazon opened Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) to all sellers running Sponsored Products, letting even small and mid-sized brands combine their first-party data with Amazon’s shopping, browsing, and streaming signals—directly inside the Ads console. Previously, access required registration or a third-party like Intentwise or Pacvue.

For Amazon sellers, this unlocks self-service, privacy-safe measurement and deeper audience insights (with up to a 5-year purchase lookback) to optimize bidding, creative, and targeting across the funnel. Expect more precise attribution and the ability to prove incremental lift from Sponsored Products—crucial as Amazon’s ad business (now ~$15.7B in Q2) gets more competitive.

​Pattern IPO raises $300M, opens at $13.50 as #2 Amazon seller​

Pattern Group, the #2 Amazon third-party seller, went public on Nasdaq with a $300M IPO, valuing the company at $2.5B. Shares opened at $13.50 and climbed, reflecting investor confidence in marketplace-driven growth.

The Utah-based “e-commerce accelerator” partners with 200+ major brands like Nestle and Skechers to manage everything from inventory to Amazon Ads, posting 39% revenue growth in Q2 to $598M. But its heavy dependence on Amazon and looming tariff risks highlight the volatility sellers face when tied too closely to one platform.

​Can Amazon MCF Speed Delivery for Walmart, Shopify & SHEIN?​

Amazon’s Multi-Channel Fulfilment (MCF) now supports sellers on Shopify, Walmart, and SHEIN, letting them ship orders with Amazon’s logistics even if the sale isn’t on Amazon.com. This means sellers can manage a shared FBA inventory pool, benefit from real-time tracking, and avoid building separate logistics systems for each channel.

Early results show merchants using MCF for non-Amazon orders see an average 19% sales lift and 12% better inventory turnover. For Amazon sellers expanding to other platforms, MCF offers a way to centralize inventory, boost delivery speed, and simplify cross-channel operations while keeping the same reliability customers expect from Amazon.

Seller Tips & Tricks

​Amazon Vine Program: Everything You Need to Know​

The Amazon Vine Program lets sellers generate up to 30 high-quality, unbiased reviews by providing free products to Amazon’s top reviewers, known as Vine Voices. These reviews carry extra weight because they’re detailed, trustworthy, and marked with a Vine badge, helping listings gain visibility and credibility.

For Amazon sellers, this can mean improved rankings, higher traffic, and better conversion rates, along with valuable feedback for refining products. While the program involves costs and offers no control over review content, it can be a powerful tool when paired with SEO, PPC, and other growth strategies.

​The Impact of Amazon On-Time Delivery on Seller Metrics​

Amazon’s On-Time Delivery Rate (OTDR) tracks whether seller-fulfilled orders reach buyers by the promised date, and falling below Amazon’s 90% threshold can trigger warnings, Buy Box suppression, or even account suspension. Many sellers overlook OTDR until it’s too late, making it a silent risk that erodes customer trust and overall account health.

Because OTDR ties directly into metrics like order defect rate, feedback, and Buy Box eligibility, even a few late shipments can have ripple effects on your performance. Sellers can protect themselves by using reliable carriers, adding buffer time, and monitoring delivery data weekly to stay ahead of potential issues.

​Watch Amazon Accelerate 2025 Sessions on Demand​

Amazon has made General Sessions and select Breakout Sessions from Accelerate 2025 available on-demand through the @SellOnAmazon YouTube channel. These sessions cover strategies, insights, and product updates designed to help sellers grow their businesses.

Highlights from the first two General Sessions are already posted, with more content—including details on new product launches—coming soon. Sellers can also mark their calendars for Amazon Accelerate 2026, scheduled for September 22–24 in Seattle.

Video of the Week

​Brands VS Distributors VS Wholesalers – Buying Products to Sell on Amazon​

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​Todd’s Top Tip: Recover Sales with Brand Tailored Promotions for Cart Abandoners

Sellers, here’s a practical strategy for September 2025: use Amazon Brand Tailored Promotions to target cart abandoners.

This feature lets you offer discounts (10-50%) to customers who added your branded products to their cart in the last 90 days but did not complete the purchase.

Sellers report recovering 10-20% of lost sales by nudging these high-intent shoppers back to checkout, especially in categories like beauty and electronics.

Eligibility requires Amazon Brand Registry enrollment and an audience of at least 100 customers.

Your plan:

• In Seller Central, navigate to “Advertising” > “Brand Tailored Promotions” and select “Create a Promotion.”
• Choose the “Brand Cart Abandoners” audience, which targets those who added items in the past 90 days without buying.
• Set a discount level (e.g., 15% off) and select 1-3 eligible ASINs, like top-selling pet supplies or gadgets.
• Enable display on product detail pages (note: promotions may show to a broader audience, but prioritize for abandoners).
• Launch the promotion for 7-30 days and monitor redemptions in the Promotions dashboard, tracking new vs. repeat customer conversions.
• Adjust based on performance, such as increasing the discount for low-redemption ASINs, while ensuring profitability.

This approach helps recapture potential revenue from engaged shoppers in a targeted way.

Top Upcoming Amazon Events

• ​AMAZON MASTERS SUMMIT 2025 – October 2-3, 2025, London, UK
• ​WHITE LABEL WORLD EXPO LAS VEGAS 2025 – October 15-16, 2025, Las Vegas, NV, USA
• ​SELLERS UNITED 2025 – October 16, 2025, Newark, NJ, USA
• ​AMA FEST UK 2025 – October 17, 2025, Brighton, UK
• ​INNOVATE 2025 – October 20-21, 2025, New York, NY, USA

The landscape is shifting fast—FTC rulings, new profit tools, cross-platform fulfillment, and increased competition mean sellers must stay sharp to thrive.

God Bless,
​
Todd Welch
Amazon Seller School

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