Legal Insights

Watchdog Podcast | Dynamic pricing and AI: When do pricing algorithms cross the line?

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• 12 November 2026 • 3 min read
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Dynamic pricing has become a familiar part of the online buying experience. From airline fares and hotel bookings to ridesharing and event tickets, prices can move according to demand, supply, inventory and other real-time factors.

But as algorithms, AI and access to consumer data make pricing increasingly sophisticated, businesses need to consider how these practices interact with the Australian Consumer Law.

In this episode of Watchdog, Partner and podcast host, Shaun Temby, is joined by Maddocks Lawyer, Kate Morel, to examine the consumer law issues surrounding dynamic pricing.

They discuss how existing protections against misleading or deceptive conduct, component pricing, unconscionable conduct and unfair contract terms can apply when prices change during the purchasing process. They also explore emerging unfair trading practices and the risks that can arise when increasingly automated pricing systems operate with limited human oversight.

  • About the guest speaker Kate Morel

    Kate Morel is a Lawyer in Maddocks' Dispute Resolution and Litigation team with expertise in litigation, alternative dispute resolution, and employment law for private and public sector clients. Kate’s experience gives her a practical and commercially focused view of Australian Consumer Law, and in this episode, how it particularly applies to emerging pricing practices.

Key topics discussed: 

  • What dynamic pricing means: how businesses can adjust the price of products and services based on real-time factors including demand, supply, inventory and customer data.
  • Misleading or deceptive conduct: why the headline price and overall impression given to consumers remain important throughout the purchasing journey.
  • Component and drip pricing: the importance of clearly communicating mandatory price components early in the buying process.
  • Consumer vulnerability: how dynamic pricing based on consumer data could potentially raise issues where businesses take advantage of vulnerable consumers.
  • Unfair contract terms: the risks associated with contract terms that allow a business to unilaterally change prices without giving consumers appropriate recourse.
  • AI and algorithmic pricing: why businesses need appropriate oversight of automated pricing systems and an understanding of how consumer data influences prices.
  • Managing the risk: the importance of transparent pricing, accurate marketing, understanding the use of consumer data and considering the potential impact on consumer trust and brand reputation.

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Shaun Temby

Shaun has over two decades of expertise in commercial disputes, competition, and consumer law and provides strategic legal solutions to franchising and consumer markets clients.

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