Amazon is apparently getting really good at ripping off your friends and family.
The e-commerce giant faced widespread backlash today following a Wall Street Journalreport detailing a rather shady advertising effort from the Jeff Bezos-helmed behemoth. Specifically, the company has been surreptitiously placing advertisements into baby registries — effectively disguising those ads as items requested by expecting parents — with only a tiny and easily overlooked "Sponsored" label to distinguish them from the rest of the listed gifts.
In other words, after someone makes a baby registry filled with items he or she actually needs, Amazon then slips in a few products as well — often without the knowledge of the person who created the list or those doing the buying.
SEE ALSO:The super chill guide to buying gifts for tech brosAnd then, of course, people purchase the random sponsored baby stuff thinking they got their brother/sister/friend/cousin the Johnson's Bath Discovery Baby Gift Set of their dreams — only realizing all too late, if at all, that they fell prey to Amazon's scheme.
Wall Street Journalreporter Rolfe Winkler documented his own experience finding one such ad in his baby registry, and shared a screenshot of it online. Looking at the picture, it's easy to imagine how a family member would confuse the sponsored item for a legit one.
Tweet may have been deleted
Notably, after being called out by the Journal, Amazon quickly went on the defensive. "We’re constantly experimenting with new ways to improve the shopping experiences for customers," a company spokesperson told the paper, along with the assurance that this particularly shady form of ad is being phased out.
That wasn't enough to mollify critics, who criticized Amazon as preying on soon-to-be parents and those who support them.
Tweet may have been deleted
Tweet may have been deleted
Tweet may have been deleted
While those on the receiving end of unneeded bath sets may be frustrated with Amazon's sponsored registry ads, you have to imagine those at the company were nothing but smiles. That's because, according to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon sold product placement deals like the one above for $500,000 each.
When you have that much money, you don't need someone else to buy you diapers.
TopicsAmazon
(责任编辑：知識)
Richard Branson 'thought he was going to die' in bike accidentWill Smith's excellent, very Instagrammed Australian adventureSnow falls on the usually quite hot Sahara DesertPhiladelphia goes wild as the Eagles win the Super Bowl
Wikipedia coOne thing's for sure: you're never too old to learn. 。Massachusetts woman Clare Picciuto turned 100 F
...[详细]Airbnb hosts face fees in city worried about affordable housing
As home-sharing becomes a popular alternative to hotels, urban housing markets are getting tighter. 。
...[详细]Former Fox News host says Roger Ailes secretly watched female employees 'disrobe'
Former Fox News host Andrea Tantaros has accused former Fox News chairman and CEO Roger Ailes, who i
...[详细]Facebook creates gamers program, adds in
Facebook is making a casting call for online gamers and incentivizing them to join via programs like
...[详细]Snapchat is about to explode in popularity, report says
Snapchat is about to have a couple of really good years.
。The company will see huge gains in the numb
...[详细]George Soros: Facebook and Google are a 'menace' to society
Another billionaire has some harsh words for Facebook. 。Speaking at a dinner at the World Economic Fo
...[详细]This nerdy PowerPoint party theme is kind of genius
Though we think elaborate theme parties should stay firmly the territory of drunk college seniors, w
...[详细]Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's love story will be a Lifetime movie
The Crown
。may get there eventually, but Lifetime is looking to do it first. 。The cable network announ
...[详细]Here's what 'Game of Thrones' actors get up to between takes
Warning: Contains some mild Season 6 spoilers right at the end (the video is spoiler-free). 。LONDON -
...[详细]A Tesla in Autopilot mode crashed into fire truck on an L.A. freeway
A Tesla sedan slammed into a fire truck on Los Angeles' heavily trafficked 405 freeway, on Monday. S
...[详细]Make money or go to Stanford? Katie Ledecky is left with an unfair choice.
Why you should watch 'Paddington 2' this weekend
