Amazon.com news stories on Newser

Peeved at Amazon, Target Yanks Kindle

Rob Quinn — Thu, 03 May 2012 07:12:34 CDT

In a sign of rising tension between online stores and their bricks-and-mortar counterparts, Target says it is going to stop selling Amazon's Kindle products. The company, one of the biggest offline sellers of Amazon's e-readers and tablets, has become fed up with shoppers using its stores as a showroom for...

Amazon Soars as Kindle Fire Grabs Market Share

Rob Quinn — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 02:31:45 CDT

Selling Kindle Fires turns out to have been a very profitable way for Amazon to lose money. The no-frills tablet computer—which sells for slightly less than it costs to make —has now captured more than half of the Android tablet market, with rival tablets from Samsung and Motorola a...

DOJ Should Have Gone After Amazon, Not Apple

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 12:31:21 CDT

When the Justice Department decided to take on "the monopolistic monolith that threatened to dominate the book industry," it chose the wrong targets —five large publishers plus minor e-book player Apple—while ignoring the all-powerful Amazon, writes a dumbfounded David Carr in the New York Times . "That’s the modern equivalent...

Amazon Now Moves to Slash E-Book Prices

Rob Quinn — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 05:32:56 CDT

Just after the Department of Justice launched its antitrust lawsuit against Apple and five major publishers , Amazon announced plans to slash e-book prices. But while the move is expected to cut the prices of major titles from $14.99 to $9.99 or less, analysts believe the benefit to consumers...

Survey: Amazon Smokes Best Buy on Prices

Dustin Lushing — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 18:34:39 CDT

If Best Buy is indeed restructuring to better compete with Amazon , a survey by Barclays suggests it needs to work on its pricing. Comparing prices at BestBuy.com to those at Amazon.com, the survey found little or no incentive to visit Best Buy. Business Insider provides a snapshot of...

Amazon Yanks 5K E-Books in Contract Dispute

Rob Quinn — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 03:30:54 CST

Amazon is playing hardball with a book distributor that refused to give it a bigger share of the pie. The company's Kindle store yanked some 5,000 e-books after Independent Publishers Group, which represents hundreds of independent publishers, refused the online giant's demands. "They decided they didn't like the terms...

Amazon Prime Scores More TV With Viacom Deal

Evann Gastaldo — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 11:12:58 CST

Another blow to Netflix ? Amazon.com announced today that it will increase the number of Instant Video selections that Amazon Prime members can stream for free. The new partnership with Viacom will add TV episodes from MTV, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, TV Land, Spike, VH1, BET, and more networks, bringing...

James Franco Sells Book Straight to Amazon

Mary Papenfuss — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 04:00:00 CST

Jack-of-multiple-trades James Franco is about to peddle his latest endeavor on Amazon. The actor's first novel, Actors Anonymous , has been acquired by Amazon's new fiction editor and the tome will head directly to the company's online store. The work is supposed to be a barely-fictionalized version of Franco's own experiences,...

15 Worst Gifts on Amazon

Dustin Lushing — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 15:41:05 CST

Sure, shopping on Amazon saves you from braving wintry winds and annoying customer lineups. But beware the bizarro products that Amazon peddles on its digital superstore. CNNMoney lists 15: