With headlines last week focussing on Amazon’s unexpectedly high quarterly loses, it’s easy to miss just how how far and wide the company is continuing to expand and experiment across the digital landscape.
Here are four new products or shifts worth keeping an eye on…
1) Amazon’s card reader:
Tech site 9to5Mac has uncovered evidence of an Amazon-powered card reader, set to go on sale in mid-August. Listed in an internal Staples document, the card reader will retail in the US for $9.99 (£5.89), and will put Amazon in direct competition with other PayPal, Square and iZettle. The news follows a recent revamp of Amazon’s smartphone Wallet app and it is predicted that the new card reading device will use that software.
Amazon is also expected to launch a new retail payments system that will use Kindle Fire tablets to process transactions directly through the retailer.
2) The Amazon 3D Printed Products store:
Amazon has announced the launch of its new 3D Printed Products store which provides access to a wide range of print on-demand products, with many that are designed to be customized or personalized by consumers. These include jewellery, toys, home decor and fashion accessories.
Customers can select and edit items before using the 3D product preview function to rotate a virtual model of the product through 360 degrees. Once an item has been personalized and purchased it is 3D printed on-demand by a manufacturing provider and then shipped directly to the customer.
3) Video shorts:
Quietly launched a few weeks ago, Amazon’s new Instant Video section “Video Shorts” focusses on short-form video content and covers categories including beauty tips, food and drink, technology and literature. The service has launched with a number of branded company channels including Simon & Schuster, Vevo, Ubisoft, Activision and Electronic Arts
Videos feature pre-roll ads and Amazon’s familiar customer review template and are served in a template that features an integrated “Related items” sidebar, encouraging consumers to click through to products directly for purchase within Amazon.
4) ComiXology goes DRM-free:
Amazon purchased ComiXology (the leading worldwide digital comics platform) in April and almost immediately stopped users from being able to make In App purchases in favour of direct sales via the ComiXology webstore. The company has now announced that publishers will be able to sell comics without DRM and that users will be able to make backups of their purchases, without copy-protection and in open file formats.
Currently DC and Marvel (the two largest comic publishers) are not taking part in the initiative, though ComiXology have announced a list of other publishers who are removing restrictions including Image Comics, Dynamite Entertainment, Zenescope Entertainment, MonkeyBrain Comics, Thrillbent, and Top Shelf Productions. It remains to be seen how long DC and Marvel can hold out if the rest of the market decides to leave DRM behind.