Amazon is reportedly developing a smartphone aimed at competing with Apple’s iPhone and Android devices.
Sources say Chinese mobile phone manufacturer Foxconn will work with Amazon. Additionally, Amazon is acquiring wireless technology patents. The sources do not mention what operating system Amazon plans to use to run the device.
“A smartphone would give Amazon a wider range of low-priced hardware devices that bolster its strategy of making money from digital books, songs and movies,” suggests Bloomberg.
“It would help Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos — who made a foray into tablets with the Kindle Fire — carve out a slice of the market for advanced wireless handsets,” notes the article.
In a related Bloomberg TV video interview, analyst Victor Anthony suggests the move is not necessarily about competing with leaders such as Samsung and Apple, but rather to provide a thin-margin device like the Kindle Fire.
“I do think it’s the next logical step for Amazon to follow,” he says. “I think what they want to do is really come out with a device that will allow them to increase the number of Amazon Store touch points whereas consumers could actually buy digital media content, they could buy physical goods. I think that’s the focus for Amazon launching a smartphone.”
According to IDC, manufacturers shipped 398.4 million smartphones and other mobile devices worldwide in Q1 2012.
Amazon is reportedly developing a smartphone aimed at competing with Apple’s iPhone and Android devices.
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