Amazon Buyers Can’t Believe Viral Ice Cream Maker Story

A simple ice cream maker has a bunch of Amazon shoppers talking. And, it’s not for the best of reasons!

The Maxi-Matic machine makes pretty standard ice cream. But, a new investigation from The Guardian shows that Amazon has more control over the price of goods than any of us could have imagined. At first, the gadget’s $59.99 price tag might not seem like a big stretch or anything. But, for a while, the Maxi-Matic was available on Best Buy’s storefront for $17.99. Suddenly, the product went missing from that tech brand’s storefront and was only available on Amazon’s shop after the fact. What followed was an interesting look into how the massive retail giant does business.

In The Guardian piece, they claimed that Amazon’s price matching feature caused them to lose money on this ice cream machine. After they discovered the vulnerability, they emailed Maxi-Matic to broker a solution. Basically, they weren’t going to sell the product anymore, and not being available on Amazon would cut into their sales. So, the ice cream machine company pulled stock from Best Buy and gave Amazon a 90 day exclusivity window.

All of this was coordinated without Consumers understanding of the situation, and now people are all upset. And it makes sense! The reporting the Guardian put forth is a clear example of price fixing at a minimum. People were able to get an ice cream maker for a really low price, and after that meddling from both sides, now that deal has been slammed shut.

Amazon Ice Cream Maker Causes A Stir

The most interesting part of this piece might be the fact that the Guardian was able to obtain some emails as a part of the California Attorney General’s Office suit against Amazon. In those snippets of communication, it’s clear that the retail giant has an open line of communication to all of its vendors. And, most consumers would expect that from a company the size of Amazon.

But, what sparked the outrage on social media was the idea that they could use this channel of communication to actively shut down a deal like this. This wasn’t the case of a misplaced one or zero in the code making an item free. It was a price that was agreed upon between Best Buy and the manufacturer. They probably had a bunch of excess stock coming into the end of the summer holiday, and we’re looking to offload some ice cream machines. Amazon got caught up in it and seemingly shut the entire thing down.

Amazon is quoted in the piece as arguing that its efforts are to protect customers from “paying too much.” The company also argued it’s right “to offer products at the competitive prices” that “customers expect from Amazon.”

What Happens Now?

This is all caught up in the courts at the moment. And there will be a resolution at some point. But, reporting like this casts doubt on the impartiality of a marketplace. If all it takes is a few emails to adjust the pricing in this way, how can consumers shop around for the best deal in the face of an agreement that they don’t even know is occurring?

Every day brings another story like this across your social media timeline. A company doing something that would have generated quite a scandal in the past. Now, Social media users and consumers are left to make their own choices. Choices get made above your head now. And, you have to deal with it on your own.

(featured image: Amazon)

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