Lawsuit filed against Washington Post for failing to disclose “dynamic pricing”
You may have encountered dynamic pricing — sometimes referred to as algorithmic, personalized, or surveillance pricing — when booking a flight or buying groceries on Instacart. It’s when a company’s algorithm decides what to charge you based on your purchase history and other behaviors. And news subscribers are increasingly noticing it when their subscriptions come up for renewal.
According to a post by Hanaa’ Tameez, a staff writer at Nieman Lab who covers innovation in the news industry: ““Like many businesses, Dow Jones uses data to inform the marketing, positioning and pricing of certain consumer subscription products,” a Dow Jones spokesperson told me when I asked about our reader’s experience. “We do this responsibly, guided by robust governance and compliance protocols. Adherence to these protocols is actively monitored and enforced by stakeholders across the business including legal, privacy and compliance.”
“Earlier this month, NJ.com subscriber Adam Lisberg got a renewal notice stating that his annual subscription price of $130 was determined by an algorithm using his personal data. NJ.com is owned by Advance Local; its website states that annual subscriptions start at $100 for basic access, while a premium subscription with various perks costs $200.
Lisberg’s Bluesky post caught the attention of other NJ.com subscribers. One was being charged $145. New York Times’ New Jersey reporter Tracey Tully was told her subscription would renew at $175.
“Dynamic pricing isn’t illegal in the United States unless it’s deployed deceptively, discriminates against protected classes, or violates antitrust laws. Last month, consumers filed a class action lawsuit against The Washington Post for failing to disclose its use of dynamic pricing. Tim Giordano is a partner at Clarkson Law Firm, the firm behind the Post lawsuit. He said that news subscribers have the right to understand how their personal data is being used.”
“Journalism has real value, and news organizations have every right to pursue a profitable business model,” Giordano said. “But individualized pricing determined by opaque AI systems using personal data, and even legally protected characteristics, is outside the bounds of fair competition and consumer protection law. This kind of AI-driven price gouging gates essential information behind a paywall that moves simply depending on who you are. It undermines public trust in one of the core pillars of democracy.”
