As e-commerce continues to flourish, an increasing number of consumers have embraced online shopping. However, some merchants are leveraging data advantages to practice differential pricing. On June 3, the Zhenjiang Consumer Association in Jiangsu Province released a **Network Consumption Price Discrimination Survey Report**, revealing common practices such as varying prices displayed on different devices and inconsistent pricing for identical hotel rooms accessed through different app entry points on travel platforms. The association clarified that randomly distributed coupons do not inherently constitute price discrimination, but issuing customized coupons to specific consumer groups based on big data analysis—thereby causing price disparities for the same product—may infringe on consumer rights.
The survey, conducted through a combination of online questionnaires and offline observations across 13 e-commerce platforms covering shopping, food delivery, and travel services, collected 7,936 valid responses. Key findings show that 82.93% of respondents were aware of price discrimination, primarily through social media (55.65%), word-of-mouth (45.58%), or personal experience (39.77%). Only 20.89% reported never encountering price discrimination, with 6.93% and 1.23% experiencing it “frequently” or “constantly.”
Specifically, 45.36% of respondents noticed price increases after repeatedly browsing products on e-commerce platforms, while 39.19% observed price variations for the same item in different accounts’ carts. On food delivery platforms, 47.85% received different discount coupon values across accounts, and 44.05% noted disparities in full-price reduction amounts between members and non-members. Travel platforms showed 52.92% of users found varying prices for the same room type via different app entries, with 39.46% encountering account-based price differences.
Offline investigations by mystery shoppers uncovered concrete examples: a ¥39 product cost ¥36 vs. ¥39 on Yadu Electricals’ store due to different coupons, a food delivery coupon package priced at ¥3.1 vs. ¥36 across accounts, and flight add-on services differing by ¥17 for identical tickets.
When facing price discrimination, 23.52% of respondents avoided complaining due to inconvenience, while others contacted platforms, used hotlines, or turned to social media. Suggestions for platforms included stronger privacy protection (55.54%), fair pricing mechanisms (48.19%), and greater transparency (31.02%).
Legal experts emphasized that data-driven customized coupons causing price disparities may violate consumer rights. The association proposed clarifying distinctions between random discounts and targeted pricing, establishing cross-departmental regulatory monitoring, and enhancing data security. Consumers are advised to protect personal information and cultivate rational spending habits to counter algorithmic inequities. This survey highlights the need for both regulatory vigilance and consumer awareness to safeguard fairness in the digital marketplace.
Related topic:
