OFT minded to drop investigation into Amazon pricing policies The UK's antitrust regulator said it was minded to drop an investigation into Amazon after the online retailer said it would alter restrictions on the prices third-party sellers can charge on other websites. The Office of Fair Trading said in a statement on Thursday that it "is currently minded to close its investigation on grounds of administrative priority. The OFT has not reached a decision as to whether there has been an infringement of competition law. The regulator opened an investigation into Amazon in October 2012, over complaints that sellers who appear on its Marketplace are prevented from offering lower prices for the same items on other websites across the EU. Amazon has decided to scrap that pricing-parity policy from Friday August 30, across the EU, prompting the OFT's decision. The policy remains in place in the United States. The Marketplace, where sellers often stock and deliver their own products, accounts for 40 per cent of products sold on Amazon globally. The commissions it generates are seen as a growing source of profit for the company. The pricing probe is one of several European skirmishes for Amazon, the world's largest online retailer by sales, which has also been criticised by UK politicians for tax arbitrage and by German unions for its labour policies. Germany's Federal Cartel Office, with which the OFT was liaising, said this week that it was looking at whether it could drop its own probe of Amazon's price restrictions after the company changed the policy. "As Amazon operates one of the UK's biggest ecommerce sites, the pricing on its website can have a wide impact on online prices offered to consumers elsewhere." said Cavendish Elithorn, a senior director at the OFT. We are pleased that sellers are now completely free to set their prices as they wish, as this encourages price competition and ensures consumers can get the best possible deals. Amazon did not respond to a request seeking comment. Price parity has been a controversial issue in ecommerce, with Apple recently found guilty of price-fixing in the US after inserting a "most-favoured nation" clause in its agreements with book publishers. The OFT is also investigating two travel websites, Booking.com and Expedia, for agreeing to limit the online discounts on hotel rooms from InterContinental Hotels. Unlike in the Amazon case, the regulator has not said it is inclined to accept the remedies proposed by the companies, and is currently undertaking a consultation on the matter. The OFT can fine a company as much as 30 per cent of its global turnover in a particular market if it finds evidence of price-fixing or an abuse of a dominant position.