The Federal Trade Commission ordered nine companies to hand over detailed information on how they use personal data to set prices and worker pay. The FTC's orders went to Delta, United, JetBlue, Lyft, Uber, DoorDash, Instacart, Target and Walmart under Section 6(b) of the FTC Act, after a 2-0 commission vote.
Each company got a 15-page special order asking whether prices move with a shopper's location, income, browsing history, purchase behavior or estimated willingness to pay.
Airlines Make Up the Largest Share of FTC Pricing Orders
Nine companies ordered by the FTC, by industry, October 2026
Pie chart. Airlines: Number of Companies 3. Retailers: Number of Companies 2. Delivery: Number of Companies 2. Ride-hailing: Number of Companies 2.
Source: FTC, AP, The Guardian
The agency also wants the algorithms behind price adjustments and records of pricing experiments and A/B tests run or proposed since January 2021, while delivery and ride-hailing firms must explain how drivers are matched with jobs, how pay is set and how customer payments are split. Companies have 45 days to respond and must contact FTC staff within 14 days, and refusal can send the agency to federal court.
What the agency is chasing
FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson framed the inquiry around opaque formulas that may decide what each customer pays and each gig worker earns.
"Consumers deserve to know whether companies use their web surfing habits..."
Andrew Ferguson, Federal Trade Commission
The study follows a surveillance pricing inquiry opened in July 2024 that targeted McKinsey, JPMorgan Chase and other firms selling pricing tools, and its January 2025 findings showed location or browser history could be used to charge different people different prices for the same goods. Ferguson has called that work rushed because it questioned intermediaries, so this round goes straight to the businesses setting prices.
Companies push back
Delta said it has zero tolerance for discriminatory or predatory pricing and has never used a fare product that targets customers with individualized offers, and JetBlue said its fares come from demand and seat availability. Instacart said shopper pay rests on distance traveled, item count and expected shopping time.
Walmart's chief executive said last month the retailer doesn't use income, shopping history or willingness to pay to set prices, and Target said it doesn't raise prices based on who shoppers are, where they live or when they shop.
The FTC can't fine or regulate airlines, which sit outside its jurisdiction along with banking, and a separate proposal requiring clear disclosure of personalized pricing has its comment period extended to Nov. 21. Legislators in at least 30 states have weighed pricing bills this year, several aimed at algorithmic pricing and electronic shelf labels.
