Head of Brand - Menu & Communication

McDonald's, Deloitte under fire over alleged menu pricing scheme. By CPI | October 18, 2026 McDonald's Corp. and Deloitte Consulting are facing a proposed class-action lawsuit alleging that a technology-driven pricing system allowed the fast-food giant to coordinate menu prices across independently operated restaurants, potentially undermining competition and raising costs for consumers. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Illinois on Oct. 15, alleges that McDonald's relied on confidential transaction information collected from competing franchise locations and company-operated restaurants to generate pricing recommendations, according to an Oct. 16 report by Law360. The complaint also identifies Deloitte as an alleged participant in the pricing arrangement, expanding the legal scrutiny surrounding McDonald's use of data analytics and artificial intelligence in its U.S. restaurant operations. According to Law360, the plaintiffs contend that McDonald's pricing system drew on commercially sensitive information that independently operated restaurants would not ordinarily share with competitors. The lawsuit argues that combining those data through a centralized platform could reduce independent decision-making and facilitate coordinated pricing. The allegations raise questions about the use of sophisticated pricing technology in franchise businesses, where individual operators generally retain authority over the prices charged to customers. Deloitte's alleged role draws scrutiny. The lawsuit alleges that Deloitte played a significant role in supporting the pricing system, including through analytical tools and advisory services used by McDonald's franchise operators. According to a summary of the complaint published by OpenClassActions, the plaintiffs allege that Deloitte developed a Strategic Pricing Analyzer connected to the system used by franchisees to evaluate recommended menu prices. The complaint also claims that Deloitte pricing advisers communicated recommendations and market trends to restaurant operators. The plaintiffs contend that Deloitte's involvement went beyond conventional consulting services and contributed to an arrangement that allegedly reduced price competition among independently owned restaurants. Those allegations have not been established in court, and Deloitte's liability remains a matter for litigation. McDonald's disputes pricing allegations. The latest complaint follows an earlier proposed class action filed Oct. 2 by Illinois consumer Michael Thomas, who accused McDonald's of using a centralized, machine-learning pricing system to influence menu prices across thousands of U.S. restaurants. According to Bloomberg Law, that complaint alleged the system had operated since at least 2019 and relied on confidential restaurant-level sales information to produce pricing recommendations. McDonald's has rejected allegations that its technology fixes prices. In comments reported by The Guardian earlier this month, the company said franchise operators retain control over menu pricing and that its analytical tools are optional resources intended to support business decisions. The company also disputed claims that those tools automatically determine prices or coordinate pricing decisions between restaurants. The October lawsuit naming Deloitte represents a further challenge to the company's position that its pricing recommendations preserve franchisee independence. Please add Competition Policy International to your preferred sources list so its news, data and interviews show up in your feed. Thanks! Rising prices intensify consumer concerns. The litigation comes amid growing public attention to restaurant affordability and the increasing use of algorithmic tools to guide commercial pricing decisions. McDonald's previously disclosed that its average U.S. menu prices increased approximately 40% between 2019 and 2024, according to company information cited by The Guardian. That increase has attracted scrutiny as consumers have become more sensitive to the cost of fast food. The lawsuits seek to connect the company's pricing practices with alleged anticompetitive conduct. However, rising menu prices alone do not establish unlawful coordination, and the plaintiffs would need to demonstrate that the challenged practices violated applicable antitrust laws. The broader legal issue centers on whether technology that aggregates confidential information from competing businesses can facilitate coordinated behavior even when those businesses retain formal authority to make their own pricing decisions. Algorithmic pricing faces wider legal challenges. The McDonald's dispute adds to a growing number of legal challenges involving software-based pricing systems across U.S. industries. Regulators and private plaintiffs have increasingly examined whether algorithms that analyze competitors' confidential information can weaken competition or encourage businesses to adopt similar pricing strategies. For franchise businesses, the distinction between providing market intelligence and facilitating coordinated prices could become particularly consequential. The cases against McDonald's and Deloitte remain at an early stage. The allegations have not been proven, and no court has determined that either company engaged in unlawful price fixing. New York ski mountain sale resolves long-running antitrust fight. By CPI | October 18, 2026 Intermountain Management has sold a ski resort in central New York that it was accused of acquiring to eliminate a nearby competitor, setting the stage for the resolution of a four-year antitrust dispute involving the state's winter sports industry. The sale of Toggenburg Mountain, near Syracuse, was announced Friday by the New York attorney general's office, according to an Oct. 16 report by Matthew Perlman in Law360. The buyer intends to reopen the mountain, potentially restoring a skiing option that disappeared after Intermountain acquired the property. The transaction follows a lawsuit filed in 2022 accusing Intermountain of reducing competition by purchasing and closing a rival ski operation. State regulators argued that the acquisition strengthened the company's control over the regional market for ski season passes, limiting consumer choice. Buyer plans to restore ski operations. Local businessman Douglas Wheeler purchased Toggenburg under a settlement negotiated with New York Attorney General Letitia James. Wheeler plans to renovate the property and resume skiing operations during the 2027-28 winter season, according to the attorney general's Oct. 16 announcement. The agreement also requires Intermountain to pay $30,000 to New York state. For four years, the company is barred from attempting to buy back Toggenburg or enforcing an employee-recruitment restriction associated with the earlier acquisition. The settlement addresses a dispute that began in 2021, when Intermountain, already the operator of Song Mountain and Labrador Mountain, purchased Toggenburg and promptly closed it. According to the attorney general's office, Intermountain also secured a five-year agreement preventing Toggenburg's former owners from operating competing businesses within 30 miles. The arrangement included restrictions on recruiting Intermountain employees. State officials said the closure left Intermountain as the sole operator in the Syracuse-area ski market, contributing to increased prices and congestion at the remaining resorts. Court ruling strengthened state's case. The legal proceedings reached a turning point in March 2025, when a New York state judge ruled that Intermountain had violated state antitrust law through its acquisition and closure of Toggenburg and associated restrictions on competition. The ruling gave the attorney general's office a stronger position in seeking a sale that would return the property to its previous use. Please add Competition Policy International to your preferred sources list so its news, data and interviews show up in your feed. Thanks! Intermountain had pursued a different outcome, seeking approval to sell the mountain for residential development rather than restore skiing operations, according to the attorney general's office. The settlement ultimately secured a buyer committed to reopening the facility. Competition and consumer impact. The dispute highlights how state antitrust enforcement can extend beyond large corporate mergers to acquisitions affecting relatively small regional markets. For regulators, the central concern was not simply Intermountain's ownership of multiple resorts, but the removal of a competing business that had previously offered consumers an alternative. In a statement announcing the settlement, James said restoring competition would benefit skiers through greater choice and potentially improved pricing and service. The attorney general characterized the transaction as a remedy for market concentration that had harmed consumers and restricted employment opportunities. The sale does not immediately restore competition, however. Toggenburg remains closed, and its return depends on the completion of Wheeler's planned improvements. The new owner's family has longstanding ties to the property. According to Spectrum News, the Wheeler family previously owned the land on which the resort was developed and intends to modernize the facility while preserving its identity as a local skiing destination. The transaction closes a significant chapter in New York's enforcement action against Intermountain while leaving the practical task of reviving the mountain to its new owner.

McDonald's faces a lawsuit over using AI to squeeze customers for every dollar. Last updated Oct 17, 2026 | AI pricing faces legal scrutiny. McDonald's is facing a federal lawsuit that puts its AI-assisted pricing system under intense scrutiny. Filed on October 2, 2026, the proposed class action alleges that pricing recommendations and nonpublic restaurant data could weaken competition across its network. The concern is that independently operated locations might adopt similar prices based on shared algorithmic guidance. McDonald's disputes the allegations, and the court has not established that the company violated the law. A lawsuit challenges pricing practices. Customer Michael Thomas filed the proposed class action in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. He alleges that McDonald's and its franchise network use an AI-powered pricing system that could coordinate menu prices across restaurants. The lawsuit seeks to represent affected consumers nationwide, although the court has not certified the proposed class. The central question is whether algorithmic recommendations can undermine competition even when software does not directly control prices. How AI influences burger prices. AI-powered pricing tools analyze business information to help companies make pricing decisions. These systems can evaluate sales trends, restaurant locations, customer demand, and competing businesses' prices. The lawsuit alleges that McDonald's system also draws on information across independently operated locations, potentially influencing their pricing decisions. McDonald's maintains that its technology offers guidance rather than setting prices. The legal dispute centers on whether these recommendations support independent decisions or encourage pricing patterns that restrict competition. Millions of transactions fuel algorithms. McDonald's restaurants generate substantial amounts of transaction data through everyday customer purchases. Its pricing technology reportedly analyzes information from millions of daily transactions across the restaurant network to support business recommendations. The lawsuit questions whether combining information from independently operated locations gives the system excessive influence over menu prices. However, collecting extensive data is not inherently illegal. The important issues are which information the system uses, how recommendations are generated, and whether its operation compromises independent pricing decisions. Franchise owners face independence questions. McDonald's operates approximately 14,000 U.S. restaurants, with franchisees running roughly 95% of those locations. These independent operators must consider local wages, rent, ingredient costs, customer demand, and nearby competition when determining menu prices. The lawsuit alleges that centralized pricing recommendations could weaken their independence by encouraging similar decisions across locations. McDonald's maintains that franchisees retain control over their prices. Whether owners can freely reject recommendations without facing pressure could become an important issue in the case. Could AI encourage higher menu prices? The lawsuit alleges that McDonald's pricing system uses information collected across its restaurant network to recommend menu prices. If competing franchisees follow similar recommendations informed by shared business data, their decisions could become less independent, potentially weakening price competition. This possibility raises concerns under antitrust law, which protects competition between businesses. However, similar prices do not automatically establish illegal coordination. Evidence would be needed to determine how the technology operates, whether businesses coordinate through it, and whether consumers suffer legally recognized harm. Fun fact: The lawsuit alleges McDonald's AI pricing tool may enable price-fixing across franchises. McDonald's denies the claims, saying franchisees set their own prices. One customer questions price differences. Michael Thomas, the Illinois customer who filed the lawsuit, reportedly noticed price differences among McDonald's locations near his home in DeKalb. His usual order included a Quarter Pounder with cheese, fries, and a Coke. Those differences helped bring the pricing system under scrutiny, but they do not independently prove unlawful conduct. Restaurant prices can vary because of local operating expenses, market conditions, and franchise decisions. The lawsuit seeks to determine whether the company's technology improperly influences those pricing differences. McDonald's rejects AI pricing allegations. McDonald's has rejected the lawsuit's central allegations, stating that artificial intelligence does not set or change its menu prices and that the company does not use dynamic pricing. According to its explanation, pricing tools provide recommendations that franchisees can choose whether to follow. The company also maintains that franchisees independently determine their menu prices. These statements represent McDonald's position, not a judicial finding. The lawsuit challenges whether the system's practical influence is consistent with the company's explanation. An expensive meal ignites customer backlash. In 2023, an $18 Big Mac meal at a Connecticut McDonald's location attracted widespread attention online and intensified criticism of fast-food affordability. The incident became a symbol of growing frustration over restaurant prices and raised questions about how menu prices are determined. However, a single expensive meal does not establish that artificial intelligence caused the price or that franchisees coordinated illegally. The current lawsuit involves separate allegations regarding pricing technology, which must be evaluated on the evidence rather than viral headlines. Antitrust law targets unfair coordination. U.S. antitrust law generally prohibits agreements among competitors to fix prices and protects the competitive process. The lawsuit alleges that McDonald's pricing platform uses nonpublic business information in ways that could influence pricing decisions across franchise locations. The existence of an algorithm alone does not establish an antitrust violation. Courts must examine the system's actual operation, the conduct of the parties involved, and the available evidence. The outcome will depend on whether the alleged practices satisfy the relevant legal requirements. Nationwide claims could affect consumers. The plaintiff seeks nationwide class-action status, potentially allowing eligible consumers' claims to be considered together. However, the court must first determine whether the proposed class satisfies the applicable legal requirements. No consumer is automatically entitled to compensation simply because the lawsuit has been filed. Any potential recovery would depend on the evidence, the court's rulings, and the case's eventual outcome. Until those questions are resolved, the allegations remain unproven, and the scope of any possible consumer relief is uncertain. AI pricing raises broader competition concerns. The dispute extends beyond McDonald's and the fast-food industry. Businesses increasingly use algorithms to analyze demand, evaluate market conditions, and recommend prices. These systems can improve efficiency, but shared data and common recommendations may raise competition concerns when independent businesses rely on the same pricing guidance. The lawsuit illustrates the challenge of applying established antitrust principles to emerging technology. Its outcome could influence how companies document pricing decisions, manage sensitive commercial information, and demonstrate that their businesses make genuinely independent choices. AI pricing faces an uncertain future. McDonald's maintains that its AI tools assist franchisees rather than determine menu prices, while the lawsuit alleges that the system could undermine competition and contribute to higher costs. Neither the allegations nor the company's response settles the legal dispute. The court must evaluate the evidence before reaching any conclusions about liability. As AI becomes more influential in commercial decisions, transparency, genuine competition, and accountability will remain essential. The case could help clarify how existing consumer protection and antitrust principles apply to algorithmic pricing. Wondering how one coin can shake the whole market? See how Bitcoin's drop triggered a $600 billion crypto landslide and what it means for your investments. Should fast-food chains use AI to maximize profits, even if customers pay more? Like, share, and comment with your opinion. This slideshow was made with AI assistance and human editing. Read More From This Brand: Marty is a smart home enthusiast who joined the team in 2023 to help grow the brand and the business to fulfil its full potential. Was this helpful? Recommended Recently Viewed Liked

McDonald's raised its quarterly dividend by 4% to $1.93 per share in September 2026, bringing the annual payout to $7.72. The increase marks 50 consecutive years of dividend growth, though it is smaller than some past rises. Second-quarter revenue rose 4% year over year to $7.10 billion, and diluted earnings per share (EPS) climbed 6% to $3.32. Global comparable sales grew just 1.3%, with 0.8% in the US. At $238.31 a share, the stock yields about 3.2%. The company generated about $7.2 billion in free cash flow in 2025, which easily covered shareholder payouts. The stock trades at about 17.1 times expected earnings, down from 23.8 in June 2025. That gives an earnings yield of about 5.9%, only slightly above the 10-year Treasury yield of 5.2% to 5.3%.