Amazon Introduces Budget-Driven ROAS Optimization for PPC Ads

Welcome to our weekly newsletter, Hunter's Insights!

In this special edition, we bring you essential Amazon updates and industry insights to keep you ahead in the fast-paced world of e-commerce:

📊 Amazon Tests ROAS-Based Auto Bidding in Sponsored Products

💲 Amazon Introduces Annual API Access Fee for Sellers

🔍 Amazon Introduces Term-Level Bid Adjustments for Sponsored Products

⏰️ Amazon Updates Timing of FBA Removal and Disposal Fees

🎥 Amazon Launches New Analytics for Product Videos

💬 Amazon Tightens Review Sharing Rules Across Variations

🆕 Amazon Introduces Co-Brand Relationships Portal in Brand Registry

📊 Amazon Tests ROAS-Based Auto Bidding in Sponsored Products

Amazon has launched a beta bidding option in Sponsored Products called “Automatically optimizing ROAS within the campaign budget.” This feature allows advertisers to set a daily budget while Amazon adjusts bids throughout the day to maximize return on ad spend, without needing a specific ROAS target.

What stands out:

• Budget-first control: Advertisers set spend limits; Amazon manages bid adjustments

• No explicit ROAS target: Optimization logic is handled entirely by the system

• Dynamic bidding throughout the day: Likely responds to real-time performance signals

• Platform-controlled optimization: Amazon manages both bidding and budget utilization

This beta enhances outcome-based automation in Sponsored Products. Performance varies with Amazon's "ROAS optimization." Advertisers should monitor this test closely, as platform-controlled bidding may differ from manual strategies. Early tests should focus on volatility, efficiency, and budget use.

💲 Amazon Introduces Annual API Access Fee for Sellers

Amazon has introduced a $1,400 annual API access fee, starting January 31, marking the first monetization since 2009. Although the fee is charged to developers, it is expected to be passed on to sellers who use third-party tools that rely on Amazon's API, indirectly impacting most sellers.

For sellers, this update highlights key points:

• Tool costs are rising: Repricing, analytics, and inventory tools will be more expensive.

• Stack bloat is costly: Relying on 8–12 tools could greatly increase cumulative costs.

• Low-impact tools are harder to justify: "Nice-to-have" dashboards may not be worth the investment.

• Efficiency is critical: ROI should guide tool selection, not just the volume of insights.

Sellers should reassess their tools to ensure they drive revenue rather than just provide data. As software costs rise, streamlining tech stacks and reinvesting savings into enhancing conversion through better creatives and messaging is essential. Prioritization is more crucial than ever.

🔍 Amazon Introduces Term-Level Bid Adjustments for Sponsored Products

Amazon has updated its Sponsored Products exact-match keywords, allowing advertisers to adjust bids for individual search terms within the same keyword. This change improves bid optimization based on specific search term performance, addressing issues with previously grouped close variants like singulars and plurals.

Key Changes:

• Term-Level Bid Control: Adjust bids for singular, plural, and grammatical variants.

• Improved Efficiency: Lower bids on underperforming variants while maintaining high-converting terms.

• Enhanced Optimization: Greater control for fine-tuning exact match campaigns.

This update increases bid precision and allows advertisers to allocate budgets based on performance, reducing waste and enhancing successful term scaling. For PPC managers, this change enables much deeper optimization than before.

⏰️ Amazon Updates Timing of FBA Removal and Disposal Fees

Amazon is changing its Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) removal and disposal fees. Starting February 15, 2026, these fees will be charged per unit at the time of removal or disposal, instead of as a lump sum. This update aims to give sellers better visibility and tracking of their removal and disposal activities.

What’s changing: 

• Per-unit billing: Fees are charged for each unit processed. 

• Improved transparency: Charges align more closely with the actual timing of removal. 

• Automatic application: This applies to all new removal and disposal orders created on or after February 15.

Fee rates remain unchanged, and no action is required from sellers. This is simply a billing timeline adjustment, not a pricing change, so sellers will see the same total fees over time, distributed across the removal process instead of being charged all at once.

🎥 Amazon Launches New Analytics for Product Videos

Amazon has updated its product video analytics, allowing brands and sellers to see how videos influence shopper behavior and conversions. Sellers can now directly link video engagement to performance outcomes, reducing uncertainty about which creative assets drive results.

The new video metrics now available include:

• Total views and view duration

• Click-through rate (CTR)

• Conversion rate (CVR)

• Sales attributed to video

This data helps brands pinpoint their top-performing videos, enhance thumbnails and openings, and effectively reuse successful content in Sponsored Brands Video campaigns. With insights into CTR and CVR, product videos can shift from a branding tool to a measurable conversion driver.

💬 Amazon Tightens Review Sharing Rules Across Variations

Starting February 12, 2026, Amazon will change how customer reviews are shared among product variations. Reviews will not automatically transfer between variations that have significant differences, ensuring they accurately reflect each variation's customer experience.

What’s changing:

• Reviews will still be shared for minor differences like color, size, and pack count.

• Reviews will not be shared for variations differing in function, material, performance, or customer experience.

• Gradual rollout by category through May 31, 2026.

• Sellers will get 30 days’ notice via email before updates affect their listings. 

Sellers relying on one strong variation for reviews may see conversion rates change as reviews get split, and variations losing inherited reviews will need to establish their own social proof. Evaluating variation structures is crucial for meeting customer expectations.

🆕 Amazon Introduces Co-Brand Relationships Portal in Brand Registry

Amazon has launched a Co-Brand Relationships portal within Brand Registry to streamline validation for licensed and co-branded products. This new system formalizes permissions for brands and prevents unauthorized use of brand assets. 

Key changes include:

• Pre-validation of co-branding allows Amazon to verify relationships before ASINs go live or are reinstated.

• Listings may face suppression if a brand in a licensed relationship isn’t enrolled in Brand Registry until validation is complete.

• Large licensors may experience slower resolutions due to required internal approvals and setup.

• Ongoing monitoring can trigger suppression for expired relationships, even with existing contracts.

The portal aims to reduce IP disputes and customer confusion by documenting brand relationships upfront, elevating compliance standards, protecting brand value, and supporting sellers with legitimate agreements.

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