While some people have touted the recently launched Sling TV service as an option for cord-cutters, it’s really better-targeted to consumers who don’t have cable but want a few more live-TV viewing options. That’s why the service is now pushing deals that will allow some Sling subscribers to get free or deeply discounted streaming devices. [More]
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Did Amazon’s Two-Day Shipping Suffer Over The Holidays? Survey Says Yes
By 2.11.15
One of the perks of paying $99/year to be an Amazon Prime member is the free two-day standard shipping on millions of items sold on the e-tailers’ site. But according to a new survey, being a Prime member didn’t always prove to be beneficial when it came to on-time deliveries last holiday season. [More]
Amazon’s Latest Service Allows Brands, Consumers To Host Online Giveaways
By 2.10.15
Amazon continued expanding its services to consumers Tuesday with the launch of a new self-service tool allowing customers to host their own giveaways. [More]
Amazon Has Already Opened Its First Offline Store, Sort Of
By 2.4.15
Yesterday’s exciting retail news was that Amazon may take part in the bidding for some of the stores that formed the desiccated husk of RadioShack, vastly expanding its offline retail network of…zero permanent stores. Yet that’s not true: the fuss over the possible stores overshadowed the actual store that Amazon opened earlier this year, which is on the campus of Purdue University in Indiana. [More]
UPS Hates Coming To Your House, To Begin Tacking On Surcharges For Residential Delivery
By 2.3.15
Last week, in advance of its quarterly earnings report, UPS admitted that it over-spent on holiday shipping in 2014 and that it wouldn’t make that mistake again. Today, with those quarterly earnings announced, the company announced how it’s going to make back some of its money — by tacking on surcharges for residential deliveries. [More]
Report: Amazon Wants To Buy Some RadioShack Stores, Too
By 2.3.15
RadioShack built its brand by creating a vast nationwide network of stores across the country: they still have 4,300 of them, which has been a significant burden for the company as it has struggled to stay relevant and make money. As the Shack prepares to declare Chapter 11 bankruptcy, those stores are a tempting asset for other retailers looking to expand their retail footprints, like mobile carrier Sprint…and now Amazon. [More]
Amazon Reportedly Dumping ‘Doctor Who’ & Other BBC Shows From Prime Instant Video On Feb. 15
By 2.2.15
Just a few weeks after Netflix subscribers were forced to deal with the potential reality of losing access to some of their favorite BBC shows (a move that Netflix reversed later, sparing titles like Doctor Who and Luther, after all that worry), Amazon Prime customers will be seeing certain titles from across the pond disappear starting Feb. 15. [More]
Amazon Adds Seller-Shipped Marketplace Items To Super Saver Shipping
By 1.28.15
People love free shipping, even if retailers don’t necessarily love it so much. For customers who don’t have Prime memberships, Amazon’s free shipping on orders of $35 or more is a popular policy. Yet if one item in a customer’s cart ships from a third-party seller, it doesn’t count toward that $35 total. Amazon has now changed this policy…but only for items that were already listed as having free shipping. [More]
Study Shows The Obvious: Amazon Prime Members Spend More On Amazon
By 1.27.15
It should be obvious to anyone with a basic understanding of how shopping works that Amazon.com customers who have a subscription to the company’s Prime service probably spend a lot more with Amazon than people who don’t. The temptation to order all of our daily needs without reaching the magical $35 free-shipping total beckons to our inner very lazy or very efficient people. [More]
Package With $4,000 Worth Of Electronics No Match For USPS Carrier’s Chucking Abilities
By 1.23.15
The other day we asked readers if they’d pay money to choose which carrier delivers their Amazon packages, and found that about 63% of you would be willing to pay some amount for that right. And it’s no wonder people want a choice, when the United States Postal Service has carriers chucking packages filled with delicate, expensive electronics inside onto porches like it’s a box filled with feathers. [More]
Would You Be Willing To Pay More To Choose Who Delivers Your Amazon Orders?
By 1.21.15
If you’ve ever been expecting a package only to find that the delivery person reports leaving a notice (which may or may not have happened) or “attempted delivery” (again, sometimes without actually doing so), you’re not alone. We’ve heard from many readers over the years and experienced it ourselves. So why can’t Amazon Prime members choose their preferred delivery service? [More]
Amazon Yanks Its New Upscale Diaper Brand To Make “Design Improvements”
By 1.21.15
Let’s take a second to imagine what an improperly designed diaper would look like. Or hey, smell like. Now that we’ve been there, Amazon says it’s pulling the upscale brand of diapers for Prime members it introduced six weeks ago, telling customers that the diapers need some “design improvements.” [More]
Overstock.com Still Trying To Be Amazon, Launching VOD & Streaming Service
By 1.20.15
Back in 2013, online retailer Overstock.com engaged in a tit-for-tat book-discounting battle with Amazon. While the short-lived competition didn’t exactly prove to be a sales dream for O.co, the company is now reportedly preparing to take on its e-retail arch nemesis again by launching video-on-demand and streaming services. [More]
Amazon To Make Movies For Theatrical Release, Because Why The Heck Not?
By 1.19.15
Amazon, the online retailer where you can rent a movie, order groceries or buy a tank, has announced that it’s venturing into a territory that seems counterintuitive for a company that focuses on delivering its products to consumers’ homes — bringing its original video productions to actual movie theaters. [More]
Amazon Exec Hopes Agreement With Hachette Ushers In An Era Of Peace With Book Publishers
By 1.15.15
It wasn’t so long ago that all of the world was transfixed by the drama unfolding between Amazon and book publisher Hachette. Now that the petty fighting and shady scare tactics are in the rearview mirror, executives with Amazon have their fingers crossed for an era of peace. [More]
Report: Amazon Uses Jedi Mind Trick To Convince Shoppers It’ll Always Have The Lowest Prices
By 1.14.15
If you ask someone why they decided to buy a product on Amazon, the answer will often be, “Well, they have the lowest prices.” But according to a new report, that’s just an Amazon mind trick at work to make people think that’s always going to be true. [More]
Free Shipping Is Expensive For Retailers, Bad For Profits
By 1.2.15
Customers love free shipping, but retailers do not. Well, that’s not quite true: retailers love the sales that the availability of free shipping drives, but it isn’t very good for their profit margins. While customers have become used to free shipping and view it as the default for shopping online, retailers still haven’t been able to figure out how to provide free shipping without losing a lot of money. [More]
Freaks And Misfits: Dispatches From Santa’s Amazon Warehouse
By 12.30.14
Santa is not real, and neither are his elves. If you’re old enough to be on the Internet unsupervised, you probably already knew that. However, there are real-life people who fill in for the toy-manufacturing elves, the North Pole, and the flying reindeer. One part of that supply chain is at the Amazon warehouses where our stuff resides. Working there is not fun or easy. [More]
