The FTC has ordered Delta, United, and JetBlue to hand over data on personalized pricing. Here's why I'm confident the investigation won't amount to much.
Not ‘too excited’ because it’s still under *this* administration, so, probably going nowhere, but seriously, any and all deceptive practices should be regulated out of existence. We deserve so much better. Enough is enough.
Yah, so long as our federal government is so overly business/billionaire friendly, I don't expect much to happen to benefit consumers.
My stance is simple. Businesses will use all sorts of methods to approximate personalized pricing. Airlines already do such things, like weekend stay requirements for lower fares. But, businesses will know that true personalized pricing would be met with a tremendous backlash. They, for the most part, will not cross the line. Some business will, get caught, and the result will scare others away from it. We consumers have great power, we don't need Washington banning it. But, sure let the FTC investigate. I look forward to being shown right.
Exactly. It's the same reason that tickets to events and theme parks are more expensive on the weekend and in summer than winter. Basic econ: supply and demand.
No, powerball; that’s an oversimplification. Anytime someone is resorting to “it’s just ‘supply and demand’” or “Econ 101” …be skeptical of their motives on here.
I think you are confusing first vs second degree price discrimination. Currently, the post is about the first degree price discrimination (two people get charged different prices while purchasing the same flight at the same time but the business uses personal information to charge different prices, like how taxi drivers in developing countries offer different prices to different customers based on their look etc) but what you are talking about is the second degree (weekend pricing etc), which has nothing to do with the post and it is legal and very commonly used everywhere.
@jflyer let me simplify my post for you. Airlines use 2nd degree price discrimation and won't, for fear of the backlash uses 1st degree (like universities do when they tailor a financial aid/scholarship package when the have the family financials or a car salesman does).
Having been working all my career for airline systems (including Amadeus and Sabre) and consulting for airlines, I can tell you that there is zero airline in the world doing personalised pricing.
Yes there are elements of customisation (e.g. a direct JFK-LHR flight can be more expensive that a MIA-JFK-LHR which would use the same JFK-LHR flight) but that's about it.
This Cory Doctorow essay tells you all you need to know about surveillance pricing when logging in to your elite airline program account
https://pluralistic.net/2026/10/07/gouged/
Man what a piece of cr@p. They claim to know of no other price discriminatory. So, they've never bought a car, gone to college, or seen senior citizen discount. I hate swarmy writing like that.
@This_comes_to_mind regularly traffics in false equivalencies and other bad faith tactics to defend corporations who take advantage of consumers… *smh*
@ben
There is a limit to the number of companies ftc can use 6b to ask info for without going through additional administrative hurdles. So, hey probably choose the most interesting or high profile companies.
This is unchartered territory for any consumer industry. Would a cable company charge someone more that consumes cable content three hours a day versus someone that consumes cable content one hour a day or less. Before there was no way to know but technology might be able to provide that information. It's not exactly price fixing and can be argued it's no more than the dynamic pricing airlines already do. A $500 round trip today can be a $1K round trip tomorrow based upon demand factors.
Personalized pricing isn't dynamic pricing or a usage fee; it's charging two different people different prices for the same thing at the same time based on hidden tracking data. Please stop sane-washing deceptive practices and carrying water for these companies on here.
Yeah, they aren't going to find anything. They have no way to charge different prices based on customer data despite what social media thinks.
^Oh, look, another username that frequently defends corporations on here… *sigh*
Actually, I disagree. The big 3 know exactly when I've flown them, what I paid, and could track all my searches on their app. I suspect they could easily download my credit reports given my name and birthdate. The question is do/will they? I say no to both.
What is wrong with personalized pricing? These are for profit businesses not charities. Also there is no constitutional right to an airline ticket. If you don’t like the price proposed don’t fly.
False premise. For-profit businesses still have to follow the law. Exploiting hidden surveillance data to trick consumers is inherently deceptive. You're not defending 'free markets'... you're celebrating the price-gauging of all of us. *facepalm*
@1990 - this isn’t “hidden data”. Most is public records, voluntarily disclosed or based on data captured by the company. Companies vary pricing all the time and if a business can use available data to improve margins they should do it.
Gambler, you should know that private tracking cookies and data broker profiles aren't 'public records.' Weaponizing an individual's digital footprint to secretly charge neighbors different prices for the exact same seat at the exact same time is algorithmic price discrimination. It's a deceptive practice. You're continuing to defend the indefensible on here. Wanna triple-down?
First degree price discrimination is illegal under the anti-trust laws but it seems like flights do not fall into these laws. However, FTC seems to think that it is still illegal under deceptive pricing, surveillance pricing, and even civil rights if the pricing is based on race, gender, sexuality (yes gays and lesbians are willing to pay substantially more than straights because of their disposable income) etc. More complicated legally than I originally thought...
Although ticket prices are generally not subject to personalized pricing at this moment, there are many anecdotes of this practice for paid upgrades. Is this within scope for the FTC investigation?
Why question the ‘scope’ of the FTC here, other than to insert plausible deniability in-favor of corporations continuing to use deceptive practices against consumers? Oh…
Interesting question. Of course, rumors of a practice and it actually happening are two different things. It is possible upgrade pricing uses personal information, but maybe it is more general. For example, airlines might have a policy of varying an upgrade price based on when the ticket was purchased, whether the pax paid for a better coach seat, ff status, age, etc. None of these are personal pricing (1st degree).
People really have no clue. Whether you like this or not it's not price fixing. Airlines have been charging passengers different fares for the same class of service for the same flight since deregulation.
Unlike @1990 that has the world view of a 12 year old, most people understand this is something Congress would need to take up. Not the President, this is within Congress's domain.
So let's see how fast the expected Democratic Party controlled Congress in 2027 looks into this. Don't get your hopes up.
I predicted that airlines wouldn't risk 1st degree price discrimination. But consider modern universities. They have an abundance of financial data on applicants from financial aid forms. Do they offer a different price? Yep. They determine a scholarship/financial aid package knowing the family's ability to pay. Thus, they discount the "sticker price" just like auto dealers. Offering different, personalized discounts come off less concerning than differential prices. Though, it is just framing, all in all.
What's a "superintelligence algorithm" Ben? Don't you mean AI?