Welcome to our weekly roundup of the top five Amazon news stories of the week.
Amazon plans to slash delivery times: BBC News reports that Amazon has promised to cut delivery times worldwide for customers of its Prime service. Amazon Prime is a subscription service offering free delivery and access to Amazon’s TV shows. Members in the US currently receive free two-day delivery, but the plan is to cut that to one day. Prime customers already get free one-day delivery in some parts of the UK. Amazon plans to spend $800m (£620m) to cut delivery times elsewhere. It did not say when delivery times would be cut but said it expects to make “steady progress” this year. Continue reading…
How to get free stuff on Amazon without an Amazon Prime membership: Dave Johnson at Business Insider reports that Amazon has always aspired to be the world’s largest retailer, even back when the site’s very first slogan was “Earth’s Biggest Bookstore.” And hand-in-hand with the site’s growth as a store has been its apparent generosity at giving away free stuff to keep customers happy. Sure, some programs have disappeared — there used to be a way to get free sample-size products included with your shipments, for example — and the company’s flagship Amazon Prime program has steadily increased in cost, making some people question if it’s still worthwhile. Continue reading…
It’s not just Amazon: Free one-day delivery is the new normal: Laura Stampler at Fortune reports that Amazon may have scored points on Wall Street last week with plans to invest $800 million so its Prime member subscribers can receive merchandise in one day. But analysts aren’t concerned the e-commerce giant’s brick-and-mortar competitors like Walmart and Target, with hefty online businesses themselves, have been caught off guard. Delivery is part of today’s heated skirmish for retail turf, and Amazon simply just made its latest move. Continue reading…
Amazon plans to create 400 tech jobs in Denver with new office expansion: Lauren Feiner at CNBC reports that Amazon plans to create 400 tech jobs and open a new office in downtown Denver, the company announced Tuesday. The expansion of Amazon’s Denver Tech Hub will more than double the tech workforce in the city’s metro area, where Amazon currently employs more than 350 employees, according to the company. Amazon previously opened an office in Boulder, Colorado last fall. The expansion will offer job titles spanning software and hardware engineering, cloud computing, and advertising, the company said. Continue reading…
Ford to offer Amazon in-car delivery and on-demand car washes in connected services push: Kirsten Korosec at TechCrunch reports that Ford is now part of Amazon’s free in-car delivery service, the latest automaker to partner with the ecommerce and logistics giant. Amazon will bring its Key by Amazon In-Car delivery service to eligible Ford and Lincoln vehicles. The service will initially launch in 50 U.S. metro areas, according to Lorin Kennedy, who leads the FordPass business venture at the automaker. For now, only Amazon Prime members who own select 2017 model year or newer Ford and 2018 or newer Lincoln vehicles can participate in the service. Continue reading…
Quote of the week:
“Sometimes, things may not go your way, but the effort should be there every single night.”
Michael Jordan
Have a great weekend!
