Amazon

[CityFarmer]

No free smartphone, says Amazon

SEATTLE — Online retail giant, Amazon.com, said on Sunday (Sept 8) that it will not launch a smartphone this year, and that if it did launch one in the future, it “would not be free.”

Wall Street Journal reporters, Mr Amir Efrati and Ms Jessica E Lessin, reported on Sept 6 that Amazon, which makes the hugely popular Kindle e-reader, will launch a smartphone in 2013, and that the gadget was free of charge via its website, citing people with knowledge of the company’s smartphone development efforts.
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http://www.todayonline.com/tech/no-free-...ays-amazon

[CityFarmer]

An interesting idea, 30 minutes delivery time is attractive, but it is yet to be tested. It is unlikely to work in Singapore, I assume...

Amazon testing delivery with drones, CEO Bezos says

WASHINGTON — Amazon.com is testing delivery packages using drones, Chief Executive Jeff Bezos said yesterday (Dec 1) on the CBS television program 60 Minutes.

Mr Bezos said the drones, unmanned vehicles that fly through the air, could deliver packages that weigh up to five pounds (2.3kg).

That represents roughly 86 per cent of packages that Amazon delivers, he said.

The goal of this new delivery system is to get packages into customers' hands in 30 minutes or less, Amazon said on its website.

The drones, which would pick up items from Amazon’s distribution centres and fly them to customer’s homes, would likely not be put into use for four or five years, Mr Bezos said. REUTERS
http://www.todayonline.com/tech/amazon-t...bezos-says

[opmi]

Amazon also down for minutes...

Amazon annual volume was S$110 billion, while annual turnover of Tmall.com and Taobao.com, two major Chinese online shopping platforms was 630 billion yuan in 2011 (from the link below) i.e. S$126 billion (exchange of S$1=5 RMB).

Hmm... Amazon serves internationally, while Tmall.com and Taobao.com serve mainly China market...

http://english.sina.com/business/p/2012/...33664.html

Amazon.com down for 15mins in US, Canada

NEW YORK — Amazon.com, the website of the world’s largest online retailer, went down for about 15 minutes yesterday (Aug 19) in a rare outage for many users across the United States and Canada.

It was unclear what triggered the rare disruption. The company, whose Amazon Web Services is designed to ramp up server capacity for customers to prevent outages, did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Earlier on Monday, users from New York and Toronto to San Francisco got only error messages when trying to access the popular shopping website. The news came less than a week after the website of the New York Times went down for about two hours.

Amazon has S$110 billion in annual gross merchandise volume, including its business through third-party sellers, according to consultants at RetailNet Group. Going by that estimate, Amazon processes some US$163,622 in transactions per minute on average. REUTERS

http://www.todayonline.com/tech/amazonco...-us-canada

I never forgave Transpac for selling Alibaba to Yahoo...

[CityFarmer]

Amazon will has more pressure, with the arrival of Alibaba in US market...

Amazon stock falls after warning of possible Q1 loss

SEATTLE — Amazon missed Wall Street’s profit estimates for the crucial holiday period and cautioned investors about a possible operating loss this quarter, pushing its shares down more than 4 per cent yesterday (Jan 30).

The world’s largest Internet retailer, which has spent heavily to forge new markets in cloud computing and digital media, expects operating results for the current quarter to range from a US$200 million (S$255 million) loss to a US$200 million profit, compared with a US$181 million profit a year ago.

Amazon has been trying to sustain its red-hot pace of growth by investing heavily in its retail and distribution network across the globe, while expanding into the technology realm with Kindle digital devices, cloud computing services and online media.

That has taken a toll on its bottom line. With revenue growth slowing as Amazon achieves unprecedented scale, analysts said investors may be getting impatient.
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http://www.todayonline.com/business/amaz...le-q1-loss

[CityFarmer]

I am curious on the 3D phone... What a interesting world, no lacking of surprises...

Amazon unveils 3D 'Fire' phone

SEATTLE - Amazon.com Inc's new cellphone seeks to offer shoppers instant gratification by recognizing thousands of products, television shows and songs and allowing users to immediately buy them - on the e-commerce giant's own site, of course.

The smartphone, which joins Amazon's "Fire" lineup of tablets and streaming devices, aims to stand out in a crowded field dominated by Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics . It represents an attempt to extend the company's dominance of online commerce into mobile phones, which are increasingly being used to buy items and view video.

But it's unclear how the phone's "Firefly" image- and audio-recognition feature or its much-touted 3D-perspectives will work in the real world, or how fickle consumers may respond to Amazon's latest bid to eliminate barriers to its core online retail business.
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http://www.todayonline.com/business/amaz...fire-phone

[CityFarmer]

I am watching Amazon, as a key competitor of Alibaba in US market. Amazon is spending big money to "prepare" for the competition? It seems PnL is taking a back-seat now...

(not vested)

Amazon loss widens despite climbing sales
25 Jul 2014 06:24
[SAN FRANCISCO] Internet retail titan Amazon on Thursday reported a money-losing quarter despite impressive growth in sales, sending shares diving.

The Seattle-based firm said that it had a net loss of US$126 million in the quarter that ended June 30, widening the deficit from US$7 million in the same period a year earlier.

Sales, meanwhile, climbed to US$19.34 billion in a 23 percent rise from the second quarter of last year.

The loss came as Amazon poured money into a new Fire smartphone, original programming for its Prime subscription service, drone package delivery and more.

"We continue working hard on making the Amazon customer experience better and better," Amazon founder and chief executive Jeff Bezos said in the earnings release.
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Source: Business Times Breaking News

[CityFarmer]

Good try, but as the article said, a neat gimmick, but not that useful...

Amazon's smartphone fails to kindle a "Fire" among reviewers
25 Jul 2014 00:20
Amazon.com Inc's new "Fire"smartphone features "gimmicks" - such as 3D effects and object scanner - that may not be enough to entice users away from similarly priced Apple Inc iPhones and Samsung's Galaxy S5, reviewers said.

Among the features of its first smartphone, Amazon has introduced "Dynamic Perspective", four cameras that track a user's face and simulate a 3D effect on the screen.

The phone also touts a "Firefly" scanner that allows users to point the phone at an object and be directed to Amazon's online store to buy it.

Those features, however, failed to impress reviewers of the phone, which goes on sale in the United States from Friday. "The Fire is the grown-up equivalent of a 9-year-old riding a bike with his hands in the air. "Look, Ma, no hands!"," Wall Street Journal's Geoffrey Fowler said.

"It's a neat gimmick, but it won't get you very far."
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Source: Business Times Breaking News

[CityFarmer]

Amazon, is no longer a pure platform provider, but a content (product) owner as well...

Amazon spending more than $100 million on original content in third-quarter

SAN FRANCISCO - Amazon.com Inc is spending more than $100 million on original video content in the third quarter, considerably higher than its spending a year ago and in the second quarter, Chief Financial Officer Tom Szkutak said on Thursday.

The largest U.S. online retailer, which also reported a larger-than-expected second-quarter loss Thursday, is beefing up its digital content. It recently approved pilots for a number of original television shows for its Prime Video service.

Szkutak told analysts during a call that members of Amazon's Prime membership program are increasingly streaming free videos online. Eventually those customers buy digital videos and other digital content as well, he added. REUTERS
http://www.todayonline.com/business/amaz...rd-quarter

[CityFarmer]

Is this a first large scale 3D consumer application?

(not vested)

Amazon offers 3D printing to customise earrings, bobble head toys

SAN FRANCISCO ­– Amazon.com will offer 3D printing services that allow customers to customise and build earrings, bobble head toys and other items from third-party sellers using a new personalisation option on its website.

Most of the more than 200 items available on the company’s new 3D printed products store, which launched today (July 28), can be customised using a new feature that allows users to rotate and change the item they are viewing.

Before it is printed by one of Amazon’s sellers, users can customise a product like as a bobble head figure by changing its skin and eye colour, hair style and outfit, Amazon said.

“The customisation is something we’re keenly interested in,” said director for Amazon marketplace sales Petra Schindler-Carter speaking in an interview. “We’ll always look for new applications for that.”
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http://www.todayonline.com/tech/amazon-o...-head-toys

[CityFarmer]

It seems publishers are reluctant to ride on e-trend, as the music producers did for their online version...

Amazon says lower e-book prices benefit authors, publishers

NEW YORK — Amazon, locked in a war with publisher Hachette over e-book prices, said its push for lower prices was good for authors, publishers and booksellers.

Upset over its e-book prices, Amazon has delayed deliveries and cut discounts on some books published by Hachette, the fourth-largest United States book publisher, owned by France’s Lagardere.

In a blog post on the Amazon site authored by the “Amazon Books team”, the e-commerce giant said e-books were very price sensitive.

Based on a review of many titles, Amazon argued that e-book priced at US$9.99 (S$12.40) sold 1.74 times as many copies as one sold at US$14.99, generating 16 per cent more revenue.

It said keeping prices low saved money for consumers while authors would get higher royalties and 74 per cent more readers, with publishers also getting more money.

“The total pie is bigger and there is more to share amongst the parties,” it said.

Amazon claims that pricing an e-book at US$14.99 or US$19.99 is too expensive and unjustifiable in most cases.
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http://www.todayonline.com/tech/amazon-s...publishers