Amazon.com failed on Thursday in its attempt to dismiss two massive lawsuits brought by retailers and consumers, valued at up to £40 billion ($5.41 billion), over allegations that the company abused its dominant market position.
In one of the cases, competition law scholar Andreas Stephan is representing over 200,000 third-party retailers in a claim worth up to £27 billion. His legal team accuses Amazon of manipulating its "Buy Box" feature to favor its own interests and prioritizing products that utilize Amazon's own logistics and delivery network.
Separately, consumer rights advocate Robert Hammond has filed a lawsuit valued at up to £13 billion on behalf of millions of Amazon customers, alleging similar abuses of market dominance.
Amazon has previously stated that these claims are without merit. The company argued that the cases should not have been certified as an early step in the legal process, citing flawed economic methodology as one reason.
The Competition Appeal Tribunal certified both cases on an opt-out basis last year, meaning members of the claimant groups are automatically included unless they choose to withdraw.
Amazon sought permission to appeal this certification decision, but the Court of Appeal denied the request on Thursday.
Amazon did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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