The introduction of a new law regarding personalized pricing in New York is both a landmark moment in consumer rights and a critical signal for entrepreneurs worldwide. As a serial entrepreneur who has lived and worked across multiple countries, I can assure you that these kinds of regulations are not just confined to one state or nation, they represent a trend that will soon redefine global market dynamics. Whether you're an emerging startup founder or an established business owner, understanding the implications of this kind of legislation is vital to future-proofing your business.
Understanding New York’s Personalized Pricing Law
This new legislation, enacted in July 2025, represents New York's bold step toward greater transparency in pricing algorithms. Businesses in the state are now required to disclose when prices are determined by personalized algorithms using customer data. Customers must be informed with the label:
“This price was set by an algorithm using your personal data.”
The motivation behind this law lies in preventing "surveillance pricing" that targets consumers based on their personal data, such as income levels, browsing habits, or even purchasing urgency. Without proper notice, customers could be unknowingly subjected to higher prices compared to others who may share the same demographics or live nearby.
Why Does This Matter to Entrepreneurs and Businesses?
The use of algorithms isn’t new, especially for product pricing, marketing, and targeting, but this law is significant for several reasons:
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Transparency and Accountability Shift:
Whether you’re a solopreneur, a SaaS developer, or head of a retail startup, you must carefully examine how your algorithms operate. Are you being transparent with your pricing? This is no longer just a best practice, it’s becoming law. -
Consumer Trust as a Competitive Edge:
Businesses that embrace transparency are likely to win higher consumer trust. Trust is not just goodwill; it greatly influences bottom lines. As an entrepreneur, your competitive edge lies in proving to customers that your AI practices are ethical and equitable. -
Setting a Global Standard for Algorithmic Practices:
As I’ve seen during international summits like the Global Blockchain Policy Forum by OECD, regulations tend to cascade across borders. Countries or states often look to early adopters when developing their own initiatives. If your business operates across regions, this New York precedent is a window into similar policies that might emerge globally.
Top Considerations for Entrepreneurs
If you are running or planning to run a business affected by this law, here’s what you need to know:
1. Conduct an Algorithmic Audit
Conduct periodic audits of your pricing algorithms to ensure they don’t employ any factors that could be deemed discriminatory or unethical. Make sure your algorithms are explainable, now is not the time for "black box" systems.
2. Redefine Your Transparency Practices
Make sure your website, invoices, and terms & conditions feature clear disclosures about the use of personalized pricing. Partner with legal experts or compliance officers if terms of the law are ambiguous to you.
3. Reassess Customer Data Collection
Prioritize ethical data practices. Inform customers about what data you collect, how it is used, and, more importantly, how it affects the prices they pay for your products or services. Transparency builds trust.
Common Missteps to Avoid
As businesses adapt to laws like this, mistakes can still happen. Here’s what you should avoid:
- Ignoring Legal Advice: Thinking this law doesn't apply to your business because you're based outside New York is a mistake. If you sell or market to New Yorkers online, you could still be required to comply.
- Using Ambiguous Disclosures: Phrases like "based on general data assessment" might land you in murky waters. Follow the law's provisions exactly as they are stated.
- Failing to Monitor Algorithm Updates: Algorithms evolve, especially with AI. Test and ensure that modifications in algorithms stay compliant over time.
- No Contingency Plan for Non-Compliance: Failure to comply could lead to significant financial penalties, legal repercussions, and reputational harm.
Practical Guide: How to Future-Proof Your Startup
Based on my own experiences as a global entrepreneur and game developer, here’s how you can ensure compliance while using algorithms effectively to grow your business:
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Prioritize Transparency from Day One:
During business development, include ethical checks in your AI processes. Tools that track how algorithms make decisions, like Model Interpretability Tools, can be integrated into your AI-powered pricing models. -
Upskill in Algorithmic Accountability:
Take courses in data ethics, like the ones provided by WIPO or the University of Nicosia's blockchain academy. Knowledge is power when it comes to staying ahead of regulations. -
Leverage Non-Personalized Data:
Avoid using sensitive data like race, gender, or socioeconomic status. Instead, rely on aggregate data such as market trends or general geographic trends to build dynamic pricing systems that sidestep ethical dilemmas. -
Collaborate with Global Compliance Experts:
For startups exploring international expansion, invest in local legal expertise, especially from regions at the forefront of new regulatory trends. Global compliance frameworks are becoming increasingly essential.
How Will This Law Impact the Future of Business?
The introduction of this law in New York is just the tip of the iceberg. Globally, both consumers and regulators are becoming wary about how personal data is being used. Here's what you can expect:
- Increased Regulations Worldwide: Similar laws could quickly be passed in tech hubs across the U.S., Europe, and even Asia, particularly in GDPR-heavy jurisdictions like the EU. Keep an eye on places like California, which has already enacted similar consumer privacy laws.
- Growing Pressure for Algorithm Transparency: Much like AI algorithms, the fitness industry evolved its wearables to comply w/legal biometric sensors (example: Fitbit Health sharing regulated more carefully since 2027 Treaty COP) tightening loopholes by 2024/5 already,entrentched.
FAQ
1. What is New York's Personalized Pricing Law about?
New York's Personalized Pricing Law mandates businesses to disclose if prices are set using algorithms based on personal data. Consumers must be notified with the statement: “This price was set by an algorithm using your personal data.” This law came into effect on July 8, 2025. Explore New York's Personalized Pricing Law
2. Why was the Personalized Pricing Law introduced in New York?
The law aims to prevent "surveillance pricing," which targets consumers based on personal data such as income, browsing behavior, or purchasing urgency. It seeks to promote transparency and fairness.
3. Does this law apply to businesses outside of New York?
Yes, businesses based outside New York but marketing or selling to New Yorkers online may still need to comply with the law due to its broad jurisdiction. Understand New York's Algorithmic Pricing Disclosure Law
4. How does this law impact transparency for consumers?
The law ensures that consumers are informed when their personal data is used to determine product prices, granting them greater control and transparency over their purchasing decisions. Learn about transparency under the new law
5. What are companies required to do under this law?
Companies must prominently display a disclosure statement explaining that prices are set by an algorithm using personal data. They must also conduct audits and ensure compliance with ethical data practices.
6. Are there penalties for non-compliance?
Yes, failing to comply with the law can result in financial penalties, legal action, and harm to a company’s reputation. Businesses are encouraged to implement contingency plans and seek legal advice.
7. What kind of data can businesses use to set personalized prices?
Businesses should avoid relying on sensitive personal data such as race, gender, or socioeconomic status and instead use aggregate, non-personalized data like general market trends.
8. Who enforces the Personalized Pricing Law in New York?
The New York Attorney General’s Office is responsible for enforcing the law and addressing reported violations aggressively. Read more on the role of the Attorney General
9. How might this law impact businesses globally?
As countries often look at early adopters for regulatory trends, this law could inspire similar policies globally, especially in regions with stringent data privacy regulations like the EU. Discover how New York sets a regulatory precedent
10. What are some first steps businesses can take to ensure compliance?
Entrepreneurs should start by conducting algorithmic audits, improving transparency regarding data collection, learning about data ethics and regulation via trusted platforms, and seeking guidance from global compliance experts.
About the Author
Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
Violetta Bonenkamp's expertise in CAD sector, IP protection and blockchain
Violetta Bonenkamp is recognized as a multidisciplinary expert with significant achievements in the CAD sector, intellectual property (IP) protection, and blockchain technology.
CAD Sector:
- Violetta is the CEO and co-founder of CADChain, a deep tech startup focused on developing IP management software specifically for CAD (Computer-Aided Design) data. CADChain addresses the lack of industry standards for CAD data protection and sharing, using innovative technology to secure and manage design data.
- She has led the company since its inception in 2018, overseeing R&D, PR, and business development, and driving the creation of products for platforms such as Autodesk Inventor, Blender, and SolidWorks.
- Her leadership has been instrumental in scaling CADChain from a small team to a significant player in the deeptech space, with a diverse, international team.
IP Protection:
- Violetta has built deep expertise in intellectual property, combining academic training with practical startup experience. She has taken specialized courses in IP from institutions like WIPO and the EU IPO.
- She is known for sharing actionable strategies for startup IP protection, leveraging both legal and technological approaches, and has published guides and content on this topic for the entrepreneurial community.
- Her work at CADChain directly addresses the need for robust IP protection in the engineering and design industries, integrating cybersecurity and compliance measures to safeguard digital assets.
Blockchain:
- Violetta’s entry into the blockchain sector began with the founding of CADChain, which uses blockchain as a core technology for securing and managing CAD data.
- She holds several certifications in blockchain and has participated in major hackathons and policy forums, such as the OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum.
- Her expertise extends to applying blockchain for IP management, ensuring data integrity, traceability, and secure sharing in the CAD industry.
Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).
She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond, launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks and is building MELA AI to help local restaurants in Malta get more visibility online.
For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.
About the Publication
Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic "without any funding and without any code," this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch.
Mission and Purpose
Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call "gamepreneurship". By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.
Key Features
The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:
- Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
- Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
- AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
- SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
- Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
- Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials
Impact and Growth
Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:
- 5,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
- 100+ startup tools built
- 5,000+ pieces of articles and news written
- 1,000 unique business ideas for women created
Partnerships
Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.
Recognition
Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique "play to learn and earn" model.