FTC demands Delta, Uber, Walmart and six others explain personalized pricing

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the federal agency that polices unfair or deceptive business practices, is demanding that nine large companies explain how they use algorithms and loyalty programs to set prices for customers and pay for workers. The companies named are Delta, United, JetBlue, Lyft, Uber, DoorDash, Instacart, Target and Walmart ¹².

The orders ask the companies to "turn over information that will allow the agency to assess whether the pricing for a ticket, ride share, food delivery or other product or service varies from one person to the next based on factors such as participation in loyalty programs or analysis of personal data by super-intelligence algorithms", the FTC said ¹.

FTC chair Andrew Ferguson said the agency will "scrutinize the opaque methodology that some companies in these industries may be using to determine how much consumers pay or how much gig workers are paid for the same product or service" ¹.

What the agency wants to know

A senior FTC official told Reuters the agency is seeking information on whether companies use personal data such as location, browsing history and income to set individual prices, wages and job offers ². The FTC plans to use the answers to publish a study for regulators and lawmakers ².

The inquiry follows investigations and lawsuits alleging that consumers are charged different prices based on their buying histories and that drivers are paid different fares based on their personal histories ¹. The FTC found in January 2025 that "details like a person’s precise location or browser history can be frequently used to target individual consumers with different prices for the same goods and services" ¹.

The National Retail Federation has criticized state laws banning personalized pricing and has defended retailers' use of data-driven discounts as a way to reward loyalty ². The FTC has said it does not have authority to issue a blanket prohibition on the practice ².

Limits on what the agency can do

The FTC polices unfair or deceptive practices in most industries, but not banking and airlines, which means it cannot impose fines or regulations on the airlines named ¹. Whether the inquiry leads to changes in consumer law or company practices is unclear ¹.

What we have seen so far is that they have not been using these studies that produce meaningful reports that ultimately lead to any rule-making changes

The timing matters. The FTC is using its consumer protection powers five days before the Nov. 3 midterm election, as voters consistently rank the cost of living as the most important issue ². FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson has said personalizing pricing could violate consumer protection laws where consumers do not expect it, and that companies should expect enforcement ².

Several states have begun introducing legislation to ban surveillance pricing and electronic shelf labels that could be used to set different prices based on shoppers' habits and online information ¹. After the FTC called for public comment, hundreds of commenters urged the agency to ban the practice outright ².

The Record

1. Jul 1, 2024The Biden administration opened an inquiry into surveillance pricing, demanding information from McKinsey, JPMorgan Chase and others ¹.
2. Jan 1, 2025The FTC found that details like a person's precise location or browser history can be used to target individual consumers with different prices for the same goods and services ¹.
3. Oct 28, 2026A senior FTC official told Reuters the agency is demanding information from Walmart, Uber and seven other companies on personalized pricing ².
4. Oct 29, 2026The Guardian reported the FTC inquiry naming Delta, United, JetBlue, Lyft, Uber, DoorDash, Instacart, Target and Walmart ¹.

Sources

1. The Guardian, “FTC orders Delta, Uber and others to hand over data on algorithmic pricing” (2026-10-29). theguardian.com/us-news/2026/oct/29/delta-uber-ftc-pricing
2. CNBC, “FTC demands Walmart and others hand over data on personalized pricing” (2026-10-28). cnbc.com/2026/10/28/ftc-walmart-uber-target-data-personalize

Found an error? Tell the newsroom. Corrections are noted at the top of the story.