FTC Orders Delta, United and JetBlue to Hand Over Fare-Setting Data

The Federal Trade Commission has given Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and JetBlue 45 days to disclose how they set fares, in a study of whether companies use personal information to price goods and services. The same orders went to Lyft, DoorDash, Uber, Instacart, Target and Walmart, with the gig platforms also asked for data on worker pay.

The timing is not subtle. Fares have climbed sharply this year, largely on surging jet fuel costs, while airlines widen their use of AI in pricing. Delta told investors in 2024 it was working with Fetcherr, an Israeli startup, and said last year it was pricing about 3% of domestic routes with AI — with a stated goal of up to 25% by the end of 2025. That's a measured figure, not a pitch, and it's precisely the kind of number a regulator wants to trace.

FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson said in a statement: "We intend to scrutinize the opaque methodology that some companies in these industries may be using to determine how much consumers pay or how much gig workers are paid for the same product or service."

What's the difference between dynamic and surveillance pricing?

The inquiry hinges on a distinction sellers of travel should understand. Dynamic pricing moves fares with supply and demand, and every shopper sees the same price at the same moment. Surveillance pricing factors in personal data about an individual customer — who they are, what device they hold, what they've browsed. Airlines say they do the first and never the second.

The industry's line is firm. Delta said it does not use personal data to set fares and has never used, tested or planned individualized pricing — a notably broad denial. United referred questions to Airlines for America, the industry trade group, which said it welcomes the study and that its carriers do not engage in personalized pricing. Airlines for America welcoming federal scrutiny is, at minimum, a confident posture.

Why JetBlue is in a different position

JetBlue carries extra baggage. A class action filed in April alleges the carrier uses trackers to set prices dynamically. The lawsuit hasn't been resolved, but it puts JetBlue's response to the FTC under a second, private spotlight.

Scrutiny of airline pricing has been building for years, ever since Delta disclosed AI fare-setting and the JetBlue suit landed. The industry's answer has stayed consistent: no personal data touches pricing. The FTC now gets to test that claim against the carriers' own records.

Are the states moving faster than Washington?

Yes, considerably. About a dozen states have proposed laws this year limiting how companies collect and use customer search data. Six — California, Arizona, Hawaii, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Vermont — have proposed bills that would ban surveillance pricing outright.

For travel sellers, the commercial stakes are straightforward. If regulators or state legislatures restrict how customer data feeds pricing engines, the AI fare systems airlines are scaling up — Delta's 3%-to-25% roadmap being the clearest example — would need walls between personalization and price. Distribution partners and agencies would feel any such rule through the fare data they receive.

The carriers now have 45 days to show their math. What the FTC does with it will shape how much of the pricing stack stays opaque.