Amazon Japan will stop requiring sellers to match the lowest prices on rival shopping sites, after the Fair Trade Commission accepted an improvement plan from the company, Kyodo News reported.
The commission had been investigating Amazon Japan for suspected violations of the antimonopoly law. It said the company improperly pushed sellers to offer discounts.
Until now, Amazon required sellers to price items at or below the lowest price on competing shopping sites to win prominent placement on its product pages.
Under the plan, items will be easier for shoppers to find if they are the cheapest on Amazon, even when they cost more than on a rival site.
A first, the commission says
The commission reached the agreement with Amazon Japan through its commitment procedure. That process lets a business escape a formal violation finding by correcting its own conduct.
"Improvements will be made ahead of the rest of the world," the commission said.
Authorities in Europe and the United States have also taken legal action over Amazon's listings, according to the commission. Amazon.com has fought the cases in court.
The commission usually issues a cease-and-desist order demanding steps to prevent a repeat when it finds a violation. This time it judged that voluntary fixes would resolve the problem faster than a formal finding.