The Federal Trade Commission wants to know whether the data companies collect about customers changes the prices they see, and whether similar systems shape gig workers' pay and job offers. On October 28, it ordered nine companies to supply information for a national study.
The recipients are Delta, United, JetBlue, Lyft, Uber, DoorDash, Instacart, Target and Walmart, according to the FTC announcement. The inquiry reaches businesses Americans use for groceries, flights, rides and deliveries. Receiving an information order does not establish that a company broke the law.
What the FTC wants to learn
The agency issued the demands under Section 6(b) of the FTC Act, which permits broad studies without a specific law-enforcement purpose. Companies have 45 days after receiving their orders to respond. That clock starts with receipt, so the announcement does not establish one common calendar deadline.
The posted special-order template asks companies to explain the personal information, software and methods used to set prices. It also asks how those methods affect the number of sales and revenue. Most requests cover January 1, 2023, through full compliance.
Workers are a separate part of the inquiry. The template asks how personal information influences which workers get which jobs, as well as compensation. It requests an explanation of how the customer's payment is divided between worker pay and company revenue. That lets the study examine both sides of a ride or delivery transaction.
A changing price can have different causes
Personalized pricing uses information about an individual to estimate what that person will pay. Dynamic pricing responds to supply and demand. A targeted coupon can also change someone's final bill. Those differences make a screenshot of two unequal prices an incomplete explanation of how a price was set.
The FTC's August proposed enforcement policy focused on undisclosed use of personal data. The agency said presenting a price as though everyone receives it, while secretly tailoring it to the person, could mislead consumers. It also said it lacks authority to prohibit personalized pricing in every circumstance. Today's information demands do not create a blanket ban or a refund program.
Reuters reported that the study is intended to inform regulators and lawmakers. Its reporting also describes the National Retail Federation's defense of data-driven discounts as a way to reward loyalty. Whether data raises a price or supplies a discount is part of the debate the study will examine.
What companies have already said
In its July 22 pricing principles, Instacart said it does not use personal information to determine item prices, membership prices or fees. It says retailers control item prices on their storefronts, while fees can vary with delivery distance, basket size and delivery speed.
Instacart separately defends personalized coupons and loyalty discounts. It also says earlier randomized price tests by some retailers ended in December 2025 and did not use personal data. These are the company's prior explanations, rather than a response to the October 28 order.
Walmart's published pricing FAQ says it does not base individual prices on browsing history, purchasing history or personal information. It says costs, competition, inventory, geography and seasonality inform pricing. Those statements describe the company's position; the FTC has yet to publish findings from this inquiry.
What happens next
For now, shoppers and workers have an inquiry to follow, with company submissions still ahead. The template seeks the exact wording, location and dates of disclosures about pricing, job allocation and pay. Those answers could help show what customers and workers were told about the systems affecting their transactions.
The order says confidential commercial or financial information will be reported in aggregate or anonymously, subject to the cited legal protections. A future public study therefore may explain patterns without exposing every company's underlying records.
