The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is suing Zillow and Redfin, accusing the real estate companies of entering what the regulator says is an illegal deal to suppress competition in online rental advertising.
In a lawsuit filed on Tuesday, the FTC alleges that this agreement started in February – when Zillow paid Redfin $100m. In exchange for that and other compensation, the commission said, Redfin agreed to end contracts with advertising partners, stop competing ads for multifamily properties for up to nine years and serve as a syndicator of Zillow listings on its own sites.
