The US Federal Trade Commission published a proposed enforcement policy statement on personalized pricing, where a company sets a price using a shopper's personal data and an estimate of what they will pay, and is taking public comment on it. The agency cannot ban the practice, but says failing to disclose how customer data sets prices may breach Section 5 of the FTC Act. Maryland and Connecticut have already passed state limits, and more than 40 such bills are pending across states.
What changed
The FTC had studied surveillance pricing but had not set out an enforcement position on it.
What it unlocks
Reviewing how customer data feeds pricing decisions against a stated federal enforcement position before it is finalized.
- 23% price gap on identical grocery item
- 42% median rideshare price gap
- 40+ state surveillance pricing bills
- two-thirds of US consumers opposed
What you need to act on it
- selling to US consumers
- pricing that varies by customer data
- retaildive.com2026-08-26