According to Insider, Amazon gives Apple’s product pages special treatment and keeps them free of unrelated ads, suggesting a possible arrangement between the two companies. Despite an antitrust lawsuit filed by the Federal Trade Commission against Amazon in September, which accused the e-commerce giant of increasing junk ads, Apple’s product pages like “iPhone” and “iPad” maintain a clean layout with no ads or recommendations. In contrast, rival brands like Samsung Galaxy and Microsoft Surface display multiple banner ads and sponsored recommendations.
The House Judiciary Committee shared an email suggesting that Apple asked Amazon to keep its product pages free of ad clutter back in 2018. Amazon’s then retail CEO, Jeff Wilke, reportedly wrote that Apple does not want to drive sales to competing brands in search or detail pages. Apple has confirmed its agreement with Amazon to prevent other companies from buying ads for “specific Apple-related brand queries” on the marketplace. This has also helped address Apple’s issues with counterfeit products on the platform, as it used to send Amazon “hundreds of thousands of take-down notices.”
There is speculation about whether a financial deal took place between the two companies, as an email shared by the House mentioned a potential financial arrangement. Initially, Amazon reportedly declined Apple’s request, but later suggested that Apple would need to purchase placements or compensate Amazon for the lost ad revenue.
