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December 23, 2019 06:14 pm

Amazon's Choice' Isn't the Endorsement It Appears

Americans searching for last-minute Christmas gifts on Amazon.com will get lots of results that include "Amazon's Choice" products. Many shoppers will assume that is a dependable stamp of approval. It isn't. From a report: Amazon attaches the badge to countless legitimate listings, but also to products regulators have raised safety concerns about, that make false claims or whose listings appear to have been manipulated by sellers to get the endorsement. Amazon sometimes gives the badge to items that violate its own policies. One is the energy supplement Redline Microburst, which calls itself a "fat burner" and which last week carried an Amazon's Choice designation, even though Amazon rules explicitly prohibited sales of Redline-brand products. Amazon has awarded the badges in recent months to a sexual-enhancement drink the Food and Drug Administration said contained Viagra, which is a prescription-only medication, and to five cellphone chargers claiming Apple certification that weren't certified brands. Amazon discloses little about the mechanics behind its Choice badge. Algorithms make most of the decisions, some former Amazon executives said. An Amazon executive in a September letter to U.S. senators said it uses "tools, including algorithms."

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