Amazon plans to launch “Shipping with Amazon,” a delivery service that will start in Los Angeles and cater to the independent merchants that sell on its site. The company intends to expand the service to additional cities and businesses over time. But analysts conclude that Amazon would have to spend tens of billions of dollars, and buy thousands of trucks, hundreds of planes and create thousands of sorting centers to scale out to the national level and handle millions of packages daily. Continue reading Amazon Plans to Launch New Delivery Service for Businesses

Amazon is now working on delivering packages inside peoples’ homes and car trunks. The e-commerce giant is on the verge of inking a partnership with Phrame, a manufacturer of a product that fits around a license plate, with a secure box that holds the keys to the car. Users can unlock the box with their smartphone, and remotely grant access to a delivery person. Sources say that Amazon is also working on a smart doorbell device that would give its delivery drivers one-time access to a person’s home. Continue reading Amazon May Soon Deliver Packages Inside Homes and Cars

To be more competitive, the U.S. Postal Service will cut its prices by as much as 58 percent on certain Priority Mail packages for retailers shipping at least 50,000 packages per year. Both UPS and FedEx believe the price cuts are an unfair way for the USPS to gain an edge in the e-commerce business. Amazon and USPS already have a partnership to deliver on Sundays, but the two organizations are teaming up again to test grocery deliveries in San Francisco. Continue reading U.S. Postal Service to Slash Prices for E-Commerce Retailers

YouTube’s new CEO Susan Wojcicki is changing the way YouTube both sells its stars and sells advertising. To increase recognition of YouTube stars, some established YouTube talent will be featured in traditional television commercials, billboards, and ads in national magazines. The company is also selling packages of its top content across 14 video categories to advertisers. These “Google Preferred” packages offer audience guarantees to advertisers who purchase in advance. Continue reading YouTube’s New Advertising Strategy Uses Traditional Methods

Amazon has acquired a patent for what it calls “anticipatory shipping,” a method the company may use to deliver packages to customers before they’ve even purchased the products. The idea is to predict which products customers want or need and eliminate the usual wait time that occurs between hitting “buy” online and receiving the package in person. The other possible effect of anticipatory shipping, if put into place, is that it might discourage consumers from going to brick-and-mortar stores. Continue reading Amazon Intends to Read Your Mind with Anticipatory Shipping

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos revealed some significant plans for the company on “60 Minutes” this week. In the not-too-distant future, Amazon plans to offer drone delivery service for its smaller packages headed for customers close to its distribution centers. Bezos expects packages weighing less than five pounds to be deliverable to addresses within a 10-mile radius by small helicopter-like devices. Amazon is calling the service “Prime Air.” Continue reading Jeff Bezos Reveals Amazon’s Plans for Drone Delivery Service