Amazon is reportedly developing clean room technology to help its advertisers better understand the impact of their spend on consumer behavior–and shine a light on previously undisclosed performance metrics. The news was first reported by AdExchanger, which cited sources familiar with the product. Amazon had no on-the-record comment. However, Price Glomski, evp of emerging commerce…
Third-party marketplaces allow Walmart and Amazon to expand the range of goods they offer and give customers more choice, which, in turn, breeds loyalty. Or at least that’s how it works in theory. But giving real estate to independent sellers comes with risks. We caught a glimpse of this when Walmart.com was listing pro-gun shirts…
Amazon’s video doorbell Ring has quietly partnered with more than 400 U.S. police forces, according to a new report from the Washington Post. Police and sheriffs’ departments in cities like Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Kansas City, Los Angeles and Phoenix not only have access to users’ camera footage, but they can also automatically request video from…
While Amazon remains the heavyweight champion of the world when it comes to smart speakers, with the most devices shipped in Q2, Chinese search engine Baidu has supplanted Google in the No. 2 spot with its Xiaodu devices, according to new research from analytics firm Canalys. Amazon shipped 6.6 million Echo devices in the quarter,…
Editor’s note: Industry consultant Shelly Palmer is taking his popular newsletter and turning it into an Adweek article once per week in an ongoing column titled “Think About This.” Amazon says its Rekognition facial recognition software can now identify fear along with seven other emotions including, happy, sad, angry, surprised, disgusted, calm and confused. What…
Two months to the day after FedEx said it would no longer fly for Amazon, the courier confirmed it is ending ground deliveries, too. A FedEx spokesperson said the change is “consistent with our strategy to focus on the broader ecommerce market.” Upon announcing it would suspend flights for Amazon in June, a rep for…
In the ongoing trade war with China, Amazon in particular faces a tough road ahead. That’s not to say tariffs will single-handedly bring down the ecommerce giant–CEO Jeff Bezos has done a pretty good job diversifying–but the small businesses responsible for 58% of Amazon’s physical gross merchandise sales in 2018 rely heavily on Chinese manufacturing….
Amazon has added a styling service for women’s apparel to its year-old Prime Wardrobe program in yet another move signaling the ecommerce platform’s intent to conquer fashion. Personal Shopper by Prime Wardrobe costs U.S. Prime members an additional $4.99 monthly, which entitles them to one styling per month. This styling includes personalized recommendations for apparel…
As connected TV, or CTV, becomes an increasingly attractive market for consumers and advertisers, Amazon is opening ad inventory in third-party Fire TV apps to demand-side platforms (DSPs) The Trade Desk and DataXu TouchPoint. In a blog post that envisioned a CTV utopia, Amazon boasted “top-quality inventory” along with “competitive separation,” fewer repeat ads and…
Amazon increased its Prime Day ad spend by more than 25% this year–to the tune of $40 million, according to media analysis company MediaRadar. The uptick comes amid increased competition in the fifth year of the online retail giant’s marquee sales event: More than 300 retailers offered copycat summer sales of their own this year….
Amazon certainly isn’t the first brand to experiment with 3D body scans, but it may be the first to really give consumers the willies. In May, Amazon made headlines for offering $25 gift cards in exchange for the scans, which raised concerns about not only its intent but potential breaches and/or exploitation. “If Amazon were…
It’s not often we see Amazon lose its cool. After all, this is the company that faced criticism about selling potentially biased and inaccurate facial recognition technology to law enforcement agencies and didn’t break a sweat. Nor did it bat an eyelash when 8,000 employees asked for it to take a stronger stance on climate…
An EU antitrust investigation and U.S. lawmakers calling on the Department of Labor to look into workplace safety are probably not the headlines Amazon was hoping for the morning after its longest-ever Prime Day. Nevertheless, the ecommerce platform was at the ready with a press release lauding the 48-hour sale as “the largest shopping event…
The European Commission has opened an antitrust investigation into whether Amazon is using data from independent sellers on its platform for competitive advantage. A press release from the Commission pointed to Amazon’s dual–and perhaps conflicting–roles as a retailer of products and as a marketplace where other merchants also sell goods. “When providing a marketplace for…
We’re past the halfway point of Amazon’s first-ever 48-hour Prime Day and Amazon is already boasting how discounts have saved Prime members “hundreds of millions of dollars in the U.S.” Meanwhile, the company says customers around the world have purchased millions of Alexa-enabled devices, along with Instant Pots, water filters and Crest 3D White Professional…
Amazon shot to fame from its rapid growth, incessant innovation and quirky business practices. But more than anything else, the company was credited for the demise of traditional brick-and-mortar retailers. As online sales increase exponentially, Amazon has been credited with single-handedly killing Borders, Toys “R” Us, Sears, J.Crew and countless other stores that have filed…
School’s out for summer, but Prime Day will awaken even the sleepiest of teenagers–and most importantly, their teachers and parents who are all clamoring for the best deals. Over the past five years, we’ve seen an evolution of this day, transforming from a pureplay Amazon event into an industrywide cultural moment. This year, the experience…
As Amazon readies for what will likely be two of its busiest days of the year, the pilots who transport its cargo are releasing a digital ad campaign on Facebook to highlight “concerns about how they are being overworked, underpaid and disrespected by their carriers.” It’s the latest move in an increasingly bitter logistics saga…
If ecommerce platform Amazon was a hero from ancient Greece, it might be Achilles, the demigod warrior who appeared unbeatable on the battlefields of Troy. As anyone familiar with the origin of “Achilles heel” knows, his well meaning mother hoped to save him from his fate, which was to die in the Trojan War, by…
Believe it or not, Amazon did not create the mid-summer sale with Prime Day. Instead, it took a pre-existing concept, rebranded it, and now, according to figures from savings site RetailMeNot, as many as 250 other retailers are following suit. Each retailer, of course, adds its own spin–staring a day earlier, ending a day later,…
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