What The Washington Post Surveillance Pricing Lawsuit Alleges
Welcome to Represent More, a production of We Are Them Media. In Episode 12, Ryan and Shireen Clarkson discuss The Washington Post surveillance pricing lawsuit and how companies may use personal data to determine the price an individual consumer pays.
Surveillance pricing can result in two people seeing different prices for the exact same product at the exact same time. Unlike haggling or traditional dynamic pricing, the practice may happen without the consumer’s knowledge.
Companies can collect information about a person’s location, device, browsing behavior, and purchase history, then use an algorithm to determine how much that person should pay.
Clarkson partners Kristen Simplicio and Yana Hart represent subscribers in the lawsuit against The Washington Post. The complaint alleges that, beginning in December 2024, the publication monitored subscriber behavior, location, and purchase history and used that information to increase prices for certain subscribers without adequate disclosure. The Washington Post subscribers who believe they may have been affected can learn more and sign up here.
A disclosure was later added after New York enacted its Algorithmic Pricing Disclosure Act, which requires businesses to warn consumers when personal data is used by an algorithm to set prices. The lawsuit alleges, however, that subscribers had already experienced months of undisclosed price increases.
Ryan and Shireen also reflect on Clarkson’s growth over the past decade, from a firm operating out of an apartment bedroom to a team of more than 30 lawyers across a dozen practice areas. As more of daily life moves online, the firm continues to grow to address consumer harm where it now occurs.
They also discuss Clarkson 180, the firm’s mid-year review process for evaluating progress, revisiting annual goals, and making adjustments before the fourth quarter.
Topics Covered This Episode
- What surveillance pricing is and how it works
- Clarkson’s lawsuit against The Washington Post
- Kristen Simplicio and Yana Hart’s role in the lawsuit
- New York’s Algorithmic Pricing Disclosure Act
- Why opting out may not be a meaningful choice for consumers
- How consumer harm is evolving in the digital world
- Ryan and Shireen’s reflection on Clarkson’s growth across new practice areas and global markets
- The firm’s mid-year Clarkson 180 review
- Rose, Bud, Thorn: family across generations, the World Cup, and keeping politics out of sports
As companies use increasingly sophisticated technology to collect consumer data and influence pricing, meaningful disclosure and accountability remain essential.
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