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Tag: Amazon

  • Amazon Launches Pages And Posts For Brands

    Amazon has “Pages” for brands now. These come with custom URLs, the ability to post messages across Amazon and Facebook, and their own analytics.

    TechCrunch’s Ingrid Lunden reports that the company is quietly pushing these out, though the analytics are “currently limited to how well brands’ Amazon-led efforts are performing.”

    Pinzon

    The offering, from Amazon Marketing Services, is free to brands and individuals, who can set up URLs in the following format: amazon.com/brandname. Lunden points to a helpful FAQ page.

    Amazon says, “Amazon Pages and Amazon Posts are self-service products that power the digital marketing activities performed by brands and agencies to reach out to their customers. An Amazon Page is a brand-specific web page at Amazon.com that functions as a custom landing page where you can drive traffic. You compose Amazon Posts that appear on either your Amazon Page or your Facebook page or both. Amazon Analytics supports these products by making use of Amazon’s IT infrastructure, analytical insight, and expertise in digital marketing to present a wide variety of usage metrics by page, post, and social channel.”

    This would be another factor for some brands to consider when assessing how much effort to put into their Facebook presences. There is some question about this, as Mark Cuban has been talking about focusing efforts elsewhere, frankly with some pretty good reasoning.

    Amazon says the main benefits of a personalized Amazon Page are that you extend your reach to Amazon customers and encourage immediate sales through a familiar purchasing environment.

    “Using Amazon Posts and Pages, you receive detailed ecommerce metrics through Amazon Analytics—insights that you can transform into well-informed posts that help drive your business objectives,” the company says. “Learn the impact of every post and page on a daily basis, by click-through rate, purchasing index, and more. Based on Amazon Analytics, you can then design well-directed posts to help increase your brand’s sales and presence with Amazon customers and Facebook users.”

    Amazon Analytics

    There is no limit to how many posts you can create per day. There’s a user guide on how to use Pages and Posts here (pdf).

  • Amazon Adds Unity Plugins To Its Game Development Tools

    Mark my words – Unity is going to be the next big game engine that everybody uses. Unreal Engine is still going to be the go to development suite for big budget console and PC games, but more and more mobile developers will be turning to Unity for its ease of use and wide array of user created assets. The folks at Amazon obviously realize this, and are taking preemptive measures to make it easy for Unity developers to craft games for its platforms.

    Amazon announced today that it has launched free Unity plugins for its In-App Purchasing and GameCircle APIs. Developers with Unity games on Kindle Fire devices will now be able to easily add these features to their games without having to write a lot of additional code.

    “Unity is one of the most popular tools for building mobile games,” said Mike Frazzini, Director of Amazon Games. “Amazon’s In-App Purchasing and GameCircle APIs help developers reach more customers, keep them engaged, and make more money. Every week millions of customers are playing GameCircle enabled games and are able to compare scores and compete against friends. We want to make it as easy as possible for developers to quickly integrate these features and our new, free plugins make it incredibly simple to do so for anyone using Unity.”

    Keith Sheperd, Founder and CEO of Imangi Studios, said that the GameCircle plugin for Unity was incredibly easy to integrate into their hit game Temple Run. He said that normally integrating GameCircle would have taken his team a few days, but the new plugins reduced the integration time to a few hours.

    Developers building Unity games for Kindle devices will want to use these plugins. They’re free and available to any developer that want them. You can grab the plugins over at Amazon’s developer site. Now get out there and start crafting the next mobile masterpiece.

  • Amazon Ends Monthly Pricing Option for Amazon Prime

    Amazon Ends Monthly Pricing Option for Amazon Prime

    In a move that suggested that Amazon was looking to more-directly compete with other monthly-charged streaming video services like Netflix and Hulu, the company recently unveiled a new pricing option for their Amazon Prime service. Some users were seeing an option to signup for a free trial, which would then turn into a $7.99 a month plan.

    Until that new pricing option appeared, Amazon Prime had only been available at the $79 a year price tag.

    Well, you can say goodbye to that option. Less than two weeks after Amazon began testing that subscription style, the company has axed it.

    “We regularly test new options for our customers. At this time, we’ve completed our test and are no longer signing up new customers for Amazon Prime monthly memberships,” they told All Things D.

    So it’s clear that it was only a test.

    A subscription to Amazon Prime not only includes access the streaming video catalog, but also the Kindle Owners Lending Library and free two-day shipping on products. Although $7.99 a month would turn out to be more in the end (if you kept it for a year), that plan was more flexible, allowing customers to subscribe to the service without making a (fairly substantial) $79 commitment all at once.

  • Amazon Introduces Video Gift Cards For The Holidays

    Can we all agree that gift cards are the way to go with holiday shopping? It’s too hard to know what people want so why not just give them a gift card? The major problem is that gift cards are incredibly boring, and lack personality. Surely, there’s a way to fix this, right?

    Amazon may just have the solution in the company’s recently announced Video Gift Cards. The retail giant has partnered with JibJab to deliver personalized video gift cards to users this holiday season and beyond. In fact, there will be gift cards available for birthdays and everyday occasions.

    “We’re excited to add Amazon Video Gift Cards to our growing set of digital gift card products,” said Max Bardon, General Manager, Amazon Gift Cards. “We think customers will love uploading a family photo to one of our entertaining holiday-themed video gift cards and enjoy the engaging gift-giving experience of the new Amazon Video Gift Cards this season.”

    Consumers will be able to choose from over 50 JibJab Starring You videos as the basis for their Video Gift Card. If you’re familiar with JibJab, the service transplants the faces of friends and family onto the bodies of whatever silly thing you choose.

    As for the gift card itself, Amazon says that consumers will be able to load the cards with up to $2,000 in funds. The card is then delivered via email or Facebook. Unlike traditional gift cards, the amounts on these cards will never expire.

    You can see check out some of Amazon’s new Video Gift Cards here. It’s a little early for holiday gift giving, but you might as well start planning on how many video gift cards you’ll embarrass family members with.

  • The Bigger Kindle Fire HD Is Now Available

    During Amazon’s Kindle event earlier this year, the company announced multiple Kindle Fire HD devices. The 7-inch Kindle Fire HD has been available for a few months now, but the larger 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD is finally available.

    Amazon announced today that the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD is now shipping to customers who had pre-ordered the device. It’s a little earlier than expected as Amazon announced back in September that the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD would ship on November 20. It should be noted that the $299 Wi-Fi only device is the one that’s shipping today. The Kindle Fire HD 4G, which costs $499, will be shipping on the expected launch date of November 20.

    “Kindle Fire HD has been Amazon’s best-selling product worldwide since launch, and that was before we even started shipping the best tablet we’ve ever built,” said Dave Limp, Vice President, Amazon Kindle. “With the holiday season upon us, we’re excited to make our $299 Kindle Fire HD 8.9” available early—we think customers are going to love web browsing, email, gaming, watching TV shows, reading magazines, and more on the large, stunning HD screen, with fast Wi-Fi and exceptional audio.”

    Those who were waiting for the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD won’t be disappointed. The device features a 1920×1200 resolution display powered by a TI OMAP 4470 processor. Games built with this processor in mind should look spectacular on its display. The battery life is also no slouch as it offers 10 hours of continuous play.

    Consumers opting for the Kindle Fire HD 4G next week will get a decent deal as far as data plans go. Users will get 250MB a session of data, $10 Amazon Appstore for Android credit, and 20GB of CloudDrive space for a one-time payment of $50. Those who want more data will be able to upgrade to a 3GB or 5GB plan through their devices.

    Those who prefer to go through retail channels will be able to pick up the bigger Kindle Fire HD from Best Buy tomorrow. The device will be available through other retailers like Staples and Radio Shack in the coming weeks.

  • Amazon Wine Marketplace Launches in 12 U.S. States

    Online retail giant Amazon.com has just announced Amazon Wine, their new marketplace where users can shop thousands of different wines from Napa Valley, Sonoma, Paso Robles, Walla Walla, Red Mountain, Willamette Valley, and more.

    “Amazon Wine is an ideal place to buy wine online, offering a vast selection of wines from iconic brands to enthusiast favorites. Learn about wine by hearing directly from the winemaker about winemaking techniques, wine tasting notes, vineyard details, and wine pairing suggestions. Become a wine connoisseur of your own right by discovering the best wine for your taste preferences, whether it’s dry wines or sweet wines, and by reading wine reviews by other customers.

    Use our simple filters to sort by type, such as red wine, white wine, rosè wine, sparkling wine, and dessert wine. Also, narrow down your choices by wine rating or price, to help you buy the perfect wine for any occasion, whether you are looking for a fine wine or an everyday wine. Examine wine labels online to help you make perfect food and wine pairings or just read wine quotes directly from the winemaker,” says the company.

    Amazon first unveiled their plans to get back into the wine selling business back in September.

    Of course, there are restrictions. Here’s what Amazon has to say about wine shipping on their Help page:

    When you order wine on Amazon.com, you’re ordering directly from a winery. Each winery operates under its own set of permits and determines which states it can ship to. Wineries using Amazon Wine are only able to ship to a limited number of U.S. states and are unable to ship to P.O. boxes or Amazon Lockers…Both the purchaser and the recipient of wine must be at least 21 years of age, and all shipments require an adult signature at delivery. The shipment won’t be delivered if an adult isn’t available to sign for the delivery.

    As of right now, only residents in a handful of states can order wine through Amazon: California, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming and the District of Columbia. Amazon says that more states are on the way.

    Amazon is simply providing the marketplace, as the individual wineries will have to handle the bulk of the labor. But having your wine available on Amazon obviously carries a huge upside for smaller wineries that can expand their potential customer base exponentially through the venture.

    “People love to explore wine, but it is rare to have detailed information and opinions located all in one place,” said Tom Hedges of Hedges Family Estate, Red Mountain, Wash. “What Amazon has done with their new wine store is take the experience of hundreds of tasting rooms and put them online. We could not be more excited by the possibilities of growing our business and reaching new customers.”

  • Amazon Releases New “Send to Kindle” Function For Browsers, Email

    Amazon has unveiled a new service that allows Kindle owners to more easily sync web content and documents from their PC or mobile devices. The new “Send to Kindle” service is now available for the Firefox and Chrome browsers, through e-mail, on Android devices, and through a desktop app for PC or Mac. The different versions of Send to Kindle can be found here.

    For Firefox and Chrome, Send to Kindle will appear as an add-on or extension button (seen above). From the button, users can sync the article, blog post, or other text content to their Kindle Library (which includes Kindle apps), or preview the content before sending.

    For those who use the Kindle app on an Android device, Send to Kindle will automatically included in the latest Kindle app update. This will add “Amazon Send to Kindle” to the share menu that appears when users choose to share content.

    For the Mac and PC desktops, Send to Kindle will also be added to context menus. In addition, documents can be sent to Kindle through the print dialog menu on both Mac and PC.

    The e-mail version of Send to Kindle is odd, if only because Amazon has allowed customers to send documents to their Kindle through e-mail since the first version of the Kindle was released. Now, Kindle users and their approved contacts can send documents to their Kindle Library through a Send-to-Kindle e-mail address, which can be found on the Manage Your Kindle page at Amazon when logged in. Supported file types are limited to Microsoft Word (both DOC and DOCX), HTML, RTF, JPEG, Kindle Format, GIF, PNG, BMP, and PDF documents.

  • Tablets Top Holiday Buying Survey, But Not the iPad Mini [Infographic]

    The results of a new Tech Bargains survey were released today, and they show that Apple may not be the big winner in the mini-tablet market this holiday season.

    The survey shows that 53% of consumers will spend more than half of their holiday shopping budgets on electronic devices. Of the tech gifts people expect to buy, tablets are, not surprisingly, the most-wanted items of the year. What is surprising is exactly which tablets customers are expecting to buy. 33% of those surveyed expect to buy Google’s Nexus 7 tablet, while only 30% expect to buy an iPad. The iPad Mini and Kindle Fire HD are tied in the survey, with 24% of respondents expecting to buy each. Bringing up the rear is Microsoft with its Surface hybrid laptop/tablet device (12%).

    It’s surprising to see Apple products that are less desired than other manufacturers’ devices. Of course, the customers who use the Tech Bargains website might not be Apple’s main customers. The website is the same one that one month ago released a survey showing that the iPad Mini isn’t particularly desired.

    Still, the high price of the iPad Mini and the low screen resolution have combined to make Apple’s smallest tablet just another mini-tablet in the new product category. Just this week a new report on shipment data shows that Apple’s overall share of the tablet market (including the iPad proper) has slipped to just over 50%, while Amazon and Asus (the makers of the Nexus 7) are gaining. The Nexus 7 is coming close to selling 1 million units per month and Amazon is confident enough in the superiority of its Kindle Fire HD that it is running homepage ads comparing it to the iPad Mini.

    Tech Tops: Holiday Shopping Lists

    Source: October 2012 Holiday Shopping Survey by TechBargains.com, your best source for deals and coupon codes.
  • Amazon Testing New Pricing Option For Amazon Prime

    Amazon Prime is a pretty good deal if you’re in it for the year’s worth of free shipping. The service has become much more than that, however, in the years since its inception. Now Amazon Prime throws in Amazon Instant Video and the massive Kindle Owners’ Lending Library. The service is tempting, but the $79/year price tag may not be justifiable to the family on a budget.

    Amazon has apparently realized that Prime may be too much for some consumers, and is now offering a “cheaper” $7.99/ month option. Hacking Netflix reports that the new $7.99 option is showing up on some consumer’s Prime sign-up page. I’m already a Prime subscriber, but I signed out to see if the new price showed up.

    Amazon Testing New Pricing Option For Amazon Prime

    The new price showed up for me, but it’s reportedly not showing up for everybody just yet. One report from Gigaom even said that the new pricing option only showed up in a particular browser, while it wasn’t showing up in another.

    It’s not clear if this is a new permanent pricing option, or just a test. We’ve reached out to Amazon for comment and we’ll update if we hear back. For now, we can only speculate as to what it means.

    It’s pretty obvious that the new pricing option would allow Amazon to better compete with other streaming services like Netflix and Hulu Plus. Amazon Instant Video has a pretty good selection of titles, but it’s the other services on offer that may bring in subscribers. The Kindle Lending Library and free two-day shipping may just convince Netflix and Hulu subscribers to switch, especially if they frequently buy products from Amazon.

    All of this is just speculation for now though. We won’t know anything until Amazon clarifies the new pricing scheme.

  • iPad Market Share Falling, Samsung & Amazon Rising

    iPad Market Share Falling, Samsung & Amazon Rising

    New shipment data from IDC shows that Apple’s share of the overall tablet market has fallen to just over 50%. Meanwhile, Samsung, Amazon, and Asus have seen their shares of the tablet market explode. The entire market for tablets grew 49.5% since the third quarter of 2012.

    “After a very strong second quarter, Apple saw growth slow as both consumer and commercial (including education) shipments declined, and rumors of a forthcoming iPad mini began to heat up,” said Tom Mainelli, research director for tablets at IDC. “We believe a sizable percentage of consumers interested in buying an Apple tablet sat out the third quarter in anticipation of an announcement about the new iPad mini. Now that the new mini, and a fourth-generation full-sized iPad, are both shipping we expect Apple to have a very good quarter. However, we believe the mini’s relatively high $329 starting price leaves plenty of room for Android vendors to build upon the success they achieved in the third quarter.”

    Apple just today announced that it has sold three million new iPads (iPad 4) during its first three days of availability. The iPad Mini has failed to garner the same excitement other Apple product have seen. Android tablet makers have capitalized on this fact, with Amazon even running an aggressive homepage comparison between the iPad Mini and its Kindle Fire HD.

    Still, Apple is shipping over half of all tablets. Samsung is racing to catch up and currently has an 18.4% share of the tablet market. This is up from 6.5% just one year ago. Amazon’s Kindle Fire tablets account for a full 9% of tablets shipped, with Asus, the makers of Google’s Nexus 7 tablet, close behind with 8.6%.

    It’s clear that the low-priced mini-tablet market is going to become a big part of the overall tablet market in the coming year. It’s also clear that Apple was late to the mini-tablet game, and that it may have priced itself too high for that particular market.

  • Fulfillment by Amazon Launched in Canada

    Fulfillment by Amazon Launched in Canada

    Amazon today announced that it has launched the Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) program for amazon.ca. The service provides third-party sellers access to Amazon’s fulfillment and customer service resources. Sellers who use the program can have Amazon pack and ship their products, and even offer their customers Amazon benefits such as Super Saver Shipping and easy returns.

    “Fulfillment by Amazon is a win-win for Canadian customers and businesses,” said Steve Oliver, director of Amazon.ca. “Customers will benefit from an even greater selection of items with free shipping and a trusted experience, while businesses can take advantage of our world-class fulfillment services and focus their efforts on growing their business.”

    Sellers must have a registered account with FBA to begin using its services. After uploading and managing their listings, an FBA logo will appear next to their products. Products stored at Amazon fulfillment centers can be packed and shipped without much hassle for the seller. The service also provides metrics tools for sellers to track their inventory and sales.

    “Since we launched FBA in the U.S., we’ve heard from sellers that offering customers a consistent experience and free shipping through FBA helps them increase their sales and grow their businesses,” said Tom Taylor, vice president of FBA. “We love doing the heavy lifting for sellers and helping them grow, so we’re excited to make FBA available in Canada as we head into the busy holiday season.”

  • Amazon Launches Cloud Drive Photos On Android

    Despite some confusion as to what the cloud actually is, many Americans are turning to it for all their storage needs. There’s big money to be had for the players in the cloud storage business and Amazon is one of the biggest players. To continue its dominance, Amazon needs to move to more platforms and that’s just what it’s doing.

    Amazon announced today that its Cloud Drive Photo app is now available on Android phones and tablets. Android users can sign in with their Amazon account and get access to 5GB of cloud storage immediately. The photos uploaded to the service can be accessed via any Android or Kindle device and PCs. Those who need more storage can upgrade to 20GB for only $10 a year.

    “Customers rely on their mobile devices more and more to capture the memories that matter to them,” said Russell Dicker, Director of Cloud Drive. They are taking photos at birthday parties, soccer games, and kids’ recitals every day on their Android phones and tablets. The Cloud Drive Photos for Android app makes it simple to save these memories into Cloud Drive and have them automatically available on your Kindle Fire or Android Phone or Tablet.”

    Android users who decide to go with Amazon for their cloud storage needs can look forward to the following features:

  • All Your Photos, Wherever You Go: Save your entire photo collection in Cloud Drive and your photos will be available to enjoy on your Kindle Fire, Android Phones and tablets, or with any web browser.
  • Share Photos Through Your Favorite Apps: You can select photos directly from your Cloud Drive and share them through Facebook, email and many other apps.
  • Save to the Cloud: It’s simple to save photos to your Cloud Drive – simply press and hold on a photo or album and select “Upload to Cloud Drive” to save directly to the Amazon Cloud from your device.
  • Beautiful Photo Display: Your photos are displayed in a horizontal mosaic or vertical grid view, optimized for the screen size of your Android device.
  • The Cloud Drive photo app is not yet available on iOS, but that should change soon. Readers point out that Amazon has brought all of its other apps to the App Store. At this point, it’s only a matter of time before iOS users can have more options for cloud storage.

  • Amazon Black Friday Deals Store Will Offer Discounts Every Day Leading Up To Black Friday

    Amazon launched its Black Friday Deals Store today. It will feature a “Deal of the Day” as well as various other “doorbuster-style Lightning Deals”.

    Amazon previewed some of the items that it will be offering discounts on at various times leading up to Black Friday. These include:

    • Panasonic VIERA ST50 Plasma TVs and E50 LED TVs
    • Samsung Series 9 Premium Ultrabook (silver)
    • Nikon Camera with 18x Zoom
    • Xbox 360 250GB with Kinect
    • JumpSport Elite 14-Foot Trampoline with Enclosure
    • Up to 40% on select Alex Toys
    • Street Surfing Amped Pro Scooters
    • Buy three or more select Hasbro Games, get the lowest price game free
    • Up to 60% off children’s books, including Disney Bedtime Favorites
    • Up to 50% off select winter clothing, including outerwear and cold weather accessories
    • Stuhrling Men’s Symphony Aristocrat Executive Automatic Skeleton Watch
    • Peugeot Women’s Diamond Accented Watch
    • Select Bosch tools and accessories
    • Up to 60% off popular TV series, including Seasons One and Two of The Walking Dead
    • Casio 76-Key Premium Keyboard Package

    “By visiting our Black Friday Deals Store, customers can expect to find a large selection of the most anticipated products of the season, all for a great price,” said Ben Hartman, Vice President of Consumer Electronics for Amazon. “Plus, they can take advantage of free shipping on millions of items through Amazon Prime and FREE Super Saver Shipping.”

    Amazon also launched the Electronics Gift List, a curated list of “new and top rated items”. Believe it or not, this features prominent placement of Kindle devices.

  • Amazon Unveils Air Patriots, the First Mobile Game to Come Out of Amazon Game Studios

    Today, Amazon has just launched their first-ever venture into mobile game development. It’s called “Air Patriots” and it is available today on Kindle Fire, Android, and iOS.

    Air Patriots is the second product from the newly-launched Amazon Game Studios, the company’s foray into making games. The company finally began making their own games in August after years and years of selling other companies’ products.

    Amazon’s first game was a social game for Facebook called Living Classics, a “moving object game” that incorporated imagery from classic literature.

    At its core, it’s a tower defense game. Amazon touts it as a “new kind of defense game” that features mobile towers and weaponry. It launches with seven different maps, achievements, and plenty of unlockables.

    Air Patriots is a new kind of tower defense game with fun and unique gameplay requiring strategic positioning of an arsenal of planes to push back an enemy tank invasion. In Air Patriots, players directly control a squadron of military planes by using their finger to draw the paths the planes will follow in order to engage the enemy. Unlike other tower defense games where defense bases are stationary, in Air Patriots players can adjust their strategy on the fly. Simply draw a new flight path for your planes, and you redeploy firepower to where it is needed most.

    Check out the trailer below:

    “When we created Air Patriots we wanted to make a game that was easy and engaging, and the simplicity of drawing paths for planes was something we thought would appeal to players,” said Ernie Ramirez, Executive Producer at Amazon Game Studios. “We think customers will find Air Patriots both familiar and fresh, with a degree of challenge that keeps them engaged and enthused to play more. We are very excited to bring Amazon customers Air Patriots today, and Amazon Game Studios looks forward to bringing our fans even more great games in the future.”

    The new game supports Amazon GameCircle, their version of Apple’s Game Center which lets players track their achievements and compete for high scores among other players.

  • Amazon Runs Giant Homepage Ad Slamming the iPad Mini

    If you happen to head over to Amazon.com this morning, you’ll be greeted with a giant ad for the Kindle Fire HD. That, in and of itself, is not really news. What is interesting is that the ad is a direct blast at Apple’s recently unveiled iPad mini.

    “Much more for much less,” is the catch phrase here. The ad takes the form of a side-by-side comparison of the two devices. Amazon hits on the Kindle Fire’s victory in pixel density, speaker quality, and HD media options.

    And it also hits on the biggest difference: the price. The Kindle Fire HD starts at $199 while the cheapest version on the iPad mini comes in at $329. The front page ad also includes a giant quote from Gizmodo calling Apple “ballsy”

    Here’s the ad as it appears on Amazon.com:

    That price. It’s been the talk of people who follow this type of stuff since the big launch event last Tuesday. Right after the event, Apple’s stock price took a big hit – and some blamed it on the high price tag of the mini. Apple’s Phil Schiller came out and defended the price, basically employing the “it’s worth it and Apple fans will pay for it because they’ve payed premium prices in the past” argument.

    This is a pretty direct swipe at Apple, and all of the comparisons are accurate. Amazon is indeed highlighting where its tablet wins. But as TUAW points out, Amazon does “forget” some points where Apple wins out, however. This includes the addition of a rear-facing camera, 64GB capacity models, and 4G/LTE availability. Then again, it is an ad for the Kindle Fire.

    The ad itself is pretty ballsy – with its direct language and targeted attack on the iPad mini. Will it pay off? As of right now, we’ve already started to see shipping times for Apple’s smaller tablet slip to two weeks, which suggests that the iPad Mini is at least seeing buzz relative to Apple’s other tablets (although we’re never really sure what the initial stock was at launch).

  • Amazon Posts $274 Million Loss Thanks To LivingSocial Issues

    Amazon announced its Q3 earnings on Thursday, falling short of analysts’ estimates.

    Net sales increased 27% year-over-year to $13.81 billion in the third quarter, but the company also posted an operating loss of $28 million, compared to operating income of $79 million for the same quarter last year, and a net loss of $274 million compared to net income $63 million in the year-ago quarter. This includes a third quarter loss of $169 million related to LivingSocial. Amazon says this is primarily attributable to impairment charge of certain assets, including goodwill.

    The company remains upbeat about its Kindle line.

    Jeff Bezos stated, “Our approach is to work hard to charge less. Sell devices near breakeven and you can pack a lot of sophisticated hardware into a very low price point. And our approach is working – the $199 Kindle Fire HD is the #1 bestselling product across Amazon worldwide. Incredibly, this is true even as measured by unit sales. The next two bestselling products worldwide are our Kindle Paperwhite and our $69 Kindle. We’re selling more of each of these devices than the #4 bestselling product, book three of the Fifty Shades of Grey series. And we haven’t even started shipping our best tablet – the $299 Kindle Fire HD 8.9” ships November 20.”

    Amazon still missed on expectations for sales, as well as guidance (not to mention earnings).

    Here’s the release in its entirety:

    SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Oct. 25, 2012– Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) today announced financial results for its third quarter ended September 30, 2012.

    Operating cash flow increased 8% to $3.37 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with $3.11 billion for the trailing twelve months ended September 30, 2011. Free cash flow decreased 31% to $1.06 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with $1.53 billion for the trailing twelve months ended September 30, 2011.

    Common shares outstanding plus shares underlying stock-based awards totaled 469 million on September 30, 2012, consistent with 469 million one year ago.

    Net sales increased 27% to $13.81 billion in the third quarter, compared with $10.88 billion in third quarter 2011. Excluding the $348 million unfavorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, net sales grew 30% compared with third quarter 2011.

    Operating loss was $28 million in the third quarter, compared with operating income of $79 million in third quarter 2011. The unfavorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter on operating loss was $3 million.

    Net loss was $274 million in the third quarter, or $0.60 per diluted share, compared with net income of $63 million, or $0.14per diluted share, in third quarter 2011. The third quarter 2012 includes a loss of $169 million, or $0.37 per diluted share, related to our equity-method share of the losses reported by LivingSocial, primarily attributable to its impairment charge of certain assets, including goodwill.

    “Our approach is to work hard to charge less. Sell devices near breakeven and you can pack a lot of sophisticated hardware into a very low price point,” said Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com. “And our approach is working – the $199 Kindle Fire HD is the #1 bestselling product across Amazon worldwide. Incredibly, this is true even as measured by unit sales. The next two bestselling products worldwide are our Kindle Paperwhite and our $69 Kindle. We’re selling more of each of these devices than the #4 bestselling product, book three of the Fifty Shades of Grey series. And we haven’t even started shipping our best tablet – the $299 Kindle Fire HD 8.9” ships November 20.”

    Highlights

    • Compared to the iPad mini, Kindle Fire HD 8.9” has:
      • 193% more pixels (2,304,000 pixels vs. 786,432 pixels)
      • 56% more pixels-per-inch (254 vs. 163)
      • Watch HD movies and TV – cannot on iPad mini (iPad mini is an SD device)
      • Better audio with dual stereo speakers and Dolby Digital Plus
      • Wi-Fi with dual band, dual antennas + MIMO
      • Costs $30 less
    • Compared to the iPad mini, Kindle Fire HD 7” has:
      • 30% more pixels (1,024,000 vs. 786,432 pixels)
      • 33% more pixels per inch (216 vs. 163)
      • Watch HD movies and TV – cannot on iPad mini (iPad mini is an SD device)
      • Better audio with dual stereo speakers and Dolby Digital Plus
      • Wi-Fi with dual band, dual antennas + MIMO
      • Costs $130 less
    • Amazon.com introduced the fifth generation Kindle e-readers: Kindle Paperwhite is the most advanced e-reader ever constructed with 62% more pixels and 25% increased contrast, a patented built-in front light for reading in all lighting conditions, up to 8 weeks of battery life, and a thin and light design for just $119; Kindle Paperwhite Wi-Fi + 3G — never pay for or hunt for a Wi-Fi hotspot with the all-new top-of-the-line Kindle e-reader with free 3G wireless for just$179; and the new latest generation Kindle, the lightest and smallest Kindle, now with new, improved fonts, faster page turns for just $69.
    • Amazon.co.jp launched the Japanese Kindle Store, offering customers a vast selection of over 50,000 Japanese-language Kindle books. In total, the store offers over one million titles, including the largest selection of bestsellers in English and other languages.
    • Amazon.com announced a new licensing agreement with EPIX for movies including The Avengers, Iron Man 2, The Hunger Games, Super 8, Thor, and more, expanding its catalog of title offerings for Prime Instant Video to more than 30,000 movies and TV episodes.
    • Amazon announced significant updates to Cloud Player, including scan and match technology which provides customers a fast and easy way to get all of their music from their computers to the cloud. Cloud Player customers can then enjoy their music on their favorite devices, including Kindle Fire, iPhone, iPod Touch, Android devices, Sonos home entertainment systems, and any web browser. Amazon also expanded Cloud Player to the U.K., Germany,France, Italy, and Spain.
    • Amazon announced it is hiring for more than 50,000 seasonal positions at its fulfillment centers across the U.S. this holiday season. Amazon employs more than 20,000 people across its 40 U.S. fulfillment centers and pays its full-time, permanent employees 30 percent more than what traditional retail store employees earn.
    • Amazon has announced 19 new fulfillment centers worldwide to be opened in time to support this year’s holiday demand.
    • North America segment sales, representing amounts earned from retail sales of consumer products (including from sellers) and subscriptions through North America-focused websites, and including amounts earned from Amazon Web Services (AWS), were $7.88 billion, up 33% from third quarter 2011.
    • International segment sales, representing amounts earned from retail sales of consumer products (including from sellers) and subscriptions through internationally-focused websites, were $5.92 billion, up 20% from third quarter 2011. Excluding the unfavorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, sales grew 27%.
    • Worldwide Media sales grew 11% to $4.60 billion. Excluding the unfavorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, sales grew 14%.
    • Worldwide Electronics and Other General Merchandise sales grew 36% to $8.56 billion. Excluding the unfavorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, sales grew 39%.
    • The NASDAQ OMX Group announced the launch of FinQloud, a cloud computing offering powered by AWS and exclusively designed for the financial services industry. FinQloud provides efficient management and storage of financial data to help market participants streamline operations and meet regulatory compliance requirements without making costly capital expenditures for their underlying infrastructure.
    • AWS announced that more than 300 government agencies and 1,500 education institutions are leveraging AWS for a wide range of uses including big data analytics, high performance computing, web and collaboration applications, archiving and storage, and disaster relief. AWS also announced new services and features available in the AWS GovCloud (U.S.) Region, including the addition of high performance computing capabilities.
    • AWS announced Amazon Glacier, a secure, reliable and extremely low cost storage service designed for data archiving and backup. Amazon Glacier is designed for data that is infrequently accessed, yet still important to retain for future reference, and for which retrieval times of several hours are suitable.

    Financial Guidance

    The following forward-looking statements reflect Amazon.com’s expectations as of October 25, 2012. Our results are inherently unpredictable and may be materially affected by many factors, such as fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, changes in global economic conditions and consumer spending, world events, the rate of growth of the Internet and online commerce and the various factors detailed below.

    Fourth Quarter 2012 Guidance

    • Net sales are expected to be between $20.25 billion and $22.75 billion, or to grow between 16% and 31% compared with fourth quarter 2011.
    • Operating income (loss) is expected to be between $(490) million and $310 million, compared with $260 million in the prior year period.
    • This guidance includes approximately $290 million for stock-based compensation and amortization of intangible assets, and it assumes, among other things, that no additional business acquisitions, investments or legal settlements are concluded and that there are no further revisions to stock-based compensation estimates.

    A conference call will be webcast live today at 2 p.m. PT/5 p.m. ET, and will be available for at least three months atwww.amazon.com/ir. This call will contain forward-looking statements and other material information regarding the Company’s financial and operating results.

    These forward-looking statements are inherently difficult to predict. Actual results could differ materially for a variety of reasons, including, in addition to the factors discussed above, the amount that Amazon.com invests in new business opportunities and the timing of those investments, the mix of products sold to customers, the mix of net sales derived from products as compared with services, the extent to which we owe income taxes, competition, management of growth, potential fluctuations in operating results, international growth and expansion, the outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment center optimization, risks of inventory management, seasonality, the degree to which the Company enters into, maintains and develops commercial agreements, acquisitions and strategic transactions, and risks of fulfillment throughput and productivity. Other risks and uncertainties include, among others, risks related to new products, services and technologies, system interruptions, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. In addition, the current global economic climate amplifies many of these risks. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com’s financial results is included in Amazon.com’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings.

    Our investor relations website is www.amazon.com/ir and we encourage investors to use it as a way of easily finding information about us. We promptly make available on this website, free of charge, the reports that we file or furnish with theSEC, corporate governance information (including our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics), and select press releases and social media postings.

    About Amazon.com

    Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle, opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995and today offers Earth’s Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth’s most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as Books; Movies, Music & Games; Digital Downloads; Electronics & Computers; Home & Garden; Toys, Kids & Baby; Grocery; Apparel, Shoes & Jewelry; Health & Beauty; Sports & Outdoors; and Tools, Auto & Industrial. Amazon Web Services provides Amazon’s developer customers with access to in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon’s own back-end technology platform, which developers can use to enable virtually any type of business. Kindle Paperwhite is the most-advanced e-reader ever constructed with 62% more pixels and 25% increased contrast, a patented built-in front light for reading in all lighting conditions, extra-long battery life, and a thin and light design. The new latest generation Kindle, the lightest and smallest Kindle, now features new, improved fonts and faster page turns. Kindle Fire HD features a stunning custom high-definition display, exclusive Dolby audio with dual stereo speakers, high-end, laptop-grade Wi-Fi with dual-band support and dual-antennas/MIMO for 40% faster throughput than other tablets, enough storage for HD content, and the latest generation processor and graphics engine—and it is available in two display sizes—7” and 8.9”. The large-screen Kindle Fire HD is also available with 4G wireless, and comes with a groundbreaking $49.99 introductory 4G LTE data package. The all-new Kindle Fire features a 20% faster processor, 40% faster performance, twice the memory, and longer battery life.

    Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.comwww.amazon.co.ukwww.amazon.de,www.amazon.co.jpwww.amazon.frwww.amazon.cawww.amazon.cnwww.amazon.it, and www.amazon.es. As used herein, “Amazon.com,” “we,” “our” and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise.

    AMAZON.COM, INC.
    Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
    (in millions)
    (unaudited)
     
    Three Months Ended
    September 30,
    Nine Months Ended
    September 30,
    Twelve Months Ended
    September 30,
    2012 2011 2012 2011 2012 2011
    CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS, BEGINNING OF PERIOD $ 2,335 $ 2,047 $ 5,269 $ 3,777 $ 2,823 $ 1,539
    OPERATING ACTIVITIES:
    Net income (loss) (274 ) 63 (137 ) 454 40 871
    Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash from operating activities:
    Depreciation of fixed assets, including internal-use software and website development, and other amortization 554 278 1,497 724 1,856 894
    Stock-based compensation 217 144 597 397 756 518
    Other operating expense (income), net 40 37 118 112 161 140
    Losses (gains) on sales of marketable securities, net (4 ) (6 ) (8 ) (4 ) (8 ) (4 )
    Other expense (income), net 157 (38 ) 153 (39 ) 137 (56 )
    Deferred income taxes (36 ) 34 (117 ) 68 (50 ) 116
    Excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation (66 ) (190 ) (61 ) (191 ) (84 )
    Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
    Inventories (647 ) (587 ) (25 ) (517 ) (1,285 ) (1,211 )
    Accounts receivable, net and other (416 ) (75 ) 164 211 (913 ) (320 )
    Accounts payable 1,223 848 (2,856 ) (1,687 ) 1,828 1,755
    Accrued expenses and other 96 109 (373 ) (9 ) 703 587
    Additions to unearned revenue 472 239 1,251 706 1,609 892
    Amortization of previously unearned revenue (373 ) (249 ) (975 ) (721 ) (1,275 ) (984 )
    Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities 943 797 (901 ) (366 ) 3,368 3,114
    INVESTING ACTIVITIES:
    Purchases of fixed assets, including internal-use software and website development (716 ) (529 ) (1,759 ) (1,261 ) (2,310 ) (1,589 )
    Acquisitions, net of cash acquired, and other (37 ) (48 ) (711 ) (656 ) (759 ) (927 )
    Sales and maturities of marketable securities and other investments 742 1,964 3,731 5,931 4,643 7,043
    Purchases of marketable securities and other investments (358 ) (1,287 ) (1,774 ) (4,475 ) (3,556 ) (6,203 )
    Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities (369 ) 100 (513 ) (461 ) (1,982 ) (1,676 )
    FINANCING ACTIVITIES:
    Excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation 66 190 61 191 84
    Common stock repurchased (960 ) (1,237 )
    Proceeds from long-term debt and other 109 9 300 131 343 173
    Repayments of long-term debt, capital lease, and finance lease obligations (144 ) (91 ) (437 ) (341 ) (537 ) (440 )
    Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities 31 (82 ) (907 ) (149 ) (1,240 ) (183 )
    Foreign-currency effect on cash and cash equivalents 40 (39 ) 32 22 11 29
    Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents 645 776 (2,289 ) (954 ) 157 1,284
    CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS, END OF PERIOD $ 2,980 $ 2,823 $ 2,980 $ 2,823 $ 2,980 $ 2,823
    SUPPLEMENTAL CASH FLOW INFORMATION:
    Cash paid for interest on long term debt $ 7 $ 4 $ 21 $ 10 $ 25 $ 13
    Cash paid for income taxes (net of refunds) 21 12 60 18 75 31
    Fixed assets acquired under capital leases 207 155 564 566 751 688
    Fixed assets acquired under build-to-suit leases 14 54 46 220 85 234
    AMAZON.COM, INC.
    Consolidated Statements of Operations
    (in millions, except per share data)
    (unaudited)
    Three Months Ended
    September 30,
    Nine Months Ended
    September 30,
    2012 2011 2012 2011
    Net product sales (1) $ 11,546 $ 9,382 $ 33,586 $ 26,691
    Net services sales (2) 2,260 1,494 6,239 3,955
    Net sales 13,806 10,876 39,825 30,646
    Operating expenses (3):
    Cost of sales 10,319 8,325 29,834 23,457
    Fulfillment 1,510 1,121 4,161 2,917
    Marketing 540 370 1,557 1,037
    Technology and content 1,192 769 3,219 2,047
    General and administrative 230 175 662 474
    Other operating expense (income), net 43 37 121 112
    Total operating expenses 13,834 10,797 39,554 30,044
    Income (loss) from operations (28 ) 79 271 602
    Interest income 10 16 32 47
    Interest expense (22 ) (17 ) (65 ) (45 )
    Other income (expense), net 18 52 (31 ) 57
    Total non-operating income (expense) 6 51 (64 ) 59
    Income (loss) before income taxes (22 ) 130 207 661
    Provision for income taxes (83 ) (67 ) (234 ) (205 )
    Equity-method investment activity, net of tax (169 ) (110 ) (2 )
    Net income (loss) $ (274 ) $ 63 $ (137 ) $ 454
    Basic earnings per share $ (0.60 ) $ 0.14 $ (0.30 ) $ 1.00
    Diluted earnings per share $ (0.60 ) $ 0.14 $ (0.30 ) $ 0.99
    Weighted average shares used in computation of earnings per share:
    Basic 452 454 452 453
    Diluted 460 461 459 460
    (1) Represents revenue from the sale of products and related shipping fees and digital content where we are the seller of record.
    (2) Represents third-party seller fees earned (including commissions) and related shipping fees, digital content subscriptions, and non-retail activities.
    (3) Includes stock-based compensation as follows:
    Fulfillment $ 56 $ 35 $ 149 $ 91
    Marketing 16 10 43 27
    Technology and content 112 75 310 211
    General and administrative 33 24 95 68
    AMAZON.COM, INC.
    CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)
    (in millions)
    (unaudited)
    Three Months Ended
    September 30,
    Nine Months Ended
    September 30,
    2012 2011 2012 2011
    Net income (loss) $ (274 ) $ 63 $ (137 ) $ 454
    Other comprehensive income (loss):
    Foreign currency translation adjustments, net of tax of $4, $16, $(17) and $17 30 (212 ) 16 (46 )
    Change in unrealized gains on available-for-sale securities, net of tax of $0, $0, $(2) and $3 2 2 4 (5 )
    Total other comprehensive income (loss) 32 (210 ) 20 (51 )
    Comprehensive income (loss) $ (242 ) $ (147 ) $ (117 ) $ 403
    AMAZON.COM, INC.
    Segment Information
    (in millions)
    (unaudited)
    Three Months Ended
    September 30,
    Nine Months Ended
    September 30,
    2012 2011 2012 2011
    North America
    Net sales $ 7,884 $ 5,932 $ 22,638 $ 16,804
    Segment operating expenses (1) 7,593 5,788 21,655 16,156
    Segment operating income $ 291 $ 144 $ 983 $ 648
    International
    Net sales $ 5,922 $ 4,944 $ 17,187 $ 13,842
    Segment operating expenses (1) 5,981 4,828 17,181 13,379
    Segment operating income (loss) $ (59 ) $ 116 $ 6 $ 463
    Consolidated
    Net sales $ 13,806 $ 10,876 $ 39,825 $ 30,646
    Segment operating expenses (1) 13,574 10,616 38,836 29,535
    Segment operating income 232 260 989 1,111
    Stock-based compensation (217 ) (144 ) (597 ) (397 )
    Other operating income (expense), net (43 ) (37 ) (121 ) (112 )
    Income (loss) from operations (28 ) 79 271 602
    Total non-operating income (expense) 6 51 (64 ) 59
    Provision for income taxes (83 ) (67 ) (234 ) (205 )
    Equity-method investment activity, net of tax (169 ) (110 ) (2 )
    Net income (loss) $ (274 ) $ 63 $ (137 ) $ 454
    Segment Highlights:
    Y/Y net sales growth:
    North America 33 % 44 % 35 % 46 %
    International 20 44 24 42
    Consolidated 27 44 30 44
    Y/Y segment operating income growth (decline):
    North America 102 % (23 ) % 52 % (2 ) %
    International (151 ) (46 ) (99 ) (29 )
    Consolidated (11 ) (35 ) (11 ) (15 )
    Net sales mix:
    North America 57 % 55 % 57 % 55 %
    International 43 45 43 45
    100 % 100 % 100 % 100 %
    (1) Represents operating expenses, excluding stock-based compensation and “Other operating expense (income), net,” which are not allocated to segments.
    AMAZON.COM, INC.
    Supplemental Net Sales Information
    (in millions)
    (unaudited)
    Three Months Ended
    September 30,
    Nine Months Ended
    September 30,
    2012 2011 2012 2011
    North America
    Media $ 2,215 $ 1,927 $ 6,285 $ 5,397
    Electronics and other general merchandise 5,061 3,635 14,771 10,435
    Other (1) 608 370 1,582 972
    Total North America $ 7,884 $ 5,932 $ 22,638 $ 16,804
    International
    Media $ 2,385 $ 2,226 $ 7,142 $ 6,373
    Electronics and other general merchandise 3,497 2,681 9,924 7,364
    Other (1) 40 37 121 105
    Total International $ 5,922 $ 4,944 $ 17,187 $ 13,842
    Consolidated
    Media $ 4,600 $ 4,153 $ 13,427 $ 11,770
    Electronics and other general merchandise 8,558 6,316 24,695 17,799
    Other (1) 648 407 1,703 1,077
    Total Consolidated $ 13,806 $ 10,876 $ 39,825 $ 30,646
    Y/Y Net Sales Growth:
    North America:
    Media 15 % 21 % 16 % 20 %
    Electronics and other general merchandise 39 56 42 62
    Other 64 77 63 79
    Total North America 33 44 35 46
    International:
    Media 7 % 27 % 12 % 24 %
    Electronics and other general merchandise 30 63 35 63
    Other 7 21 15 20
    Total International 20 44 24 42
    Consolidated:
    Media 11 % 24 % 14 % 22 %
    Electronics and other general merchandise 36 59 39 62
    Other 59 70 58 70
    Total Consolidated 27 44 30 44
    Y/Y Net Sales Growth Excluding Effect of Exchange Rates:
    International:
    Media 12 % 17 % 15 % 15 %
    Electronics and other general merchandise 39 51 41 51
    Other 13 13 20 13
    Total International 27 33 29 32
    Consolidated:
    Media 14 % 19 % 16 % 17 %
    Electronics and other general merchandise 39 54 41 58
    Other 60 69 59 69
    Total Consolidated 30 39 32 40
    Consolidated Net Sales Mix:
    Media 33 % 38 % 34 % 38 %
    Electronics and other general merchandise 62 58 62 58
    Other 5 4 4 4
    100 % 100 % 100 % 100 %
    (1) Includes non-retail activities, such as AWS in the North America segment, advertising services, our co-branded credit card agreements, and other seller sites in both segments.
    AMAZON.COM, INC.
    Consolidated Balance Sheets
    (in millions, except per share data)
    September 30,
    2012
    December 31,
    2011
    ASSETS (unaudited)
    Current assets:
    Cash and cash equivalents $ 2,980 $ 5,269
    Marketable securities 2,268 4,307
    Inventories 5,065 4,992
    Accounts receivable, net and other 2,392 2,571
    Deferred tax assets 413 351
    Total current assets 13,118 17,490
    Fixed assets, net 5,662 4,417
    Deferred tax assets 38 28
    Goodwill 2,540 1,955
    Other assets 1,476 1,388
    Total assets $ 22,834 $ 25,278
    LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
    Current liabilities:
    Accounts payable $ 8,369 $ 11,145
    Accrued expenses and other 4,236 3,751
    Total current liabilities 12,605 14,896
    Long-term liabilities 2,676 2,625
    Commitments and contingencies
    Stockholders’ equity:
    Preferred stock, $0.01 par value:
    Authorized shares — 500
    Issued and outstanding shares — none
    Common stock, $0.01 par value:
    Authorized shares — 5,000
    Issued shares — 476 and 473
    Outstanding shares — 453 and 455 5 5
    Treasury stock, at cost (1,837 ) (877 )
    Additional paid-in capital 7,863 6,990
    Accumulated other comprehensive loss (296 ) (316 )
    Retained earnings 1,818 1,955
    Total stockholders’ equity 7,553 7,757
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity $ 22,834 $ 25,278
    AMAZON.COM, INC.
    Supplemental Financial Information and Business Metrics
    (in millions, except per share data)
    (unaudited)
    Q3 2011 Q4 2011 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q3 2012 Y/Y %
    Change
    Cash Flows and Shares
    Operating cash flow — trailing twelve months (TTM) $ 3,114 $ 3,903 $ 3,051 $ 3,222 $ 3,368 8%
    Purchases of fixed assets (incl. internal-use software & website development) — TTM $ 1,589 $ 1,811 $ 1,899 $ 2,123 $ 2,310 45%
    Free cash flow (operating cash flow less purchases of fixed assets) — TTM $ 1,525 $ 2,092 $ 1,152 $ 1,099 $ 1,058 (31%)
    Free cash flow — TTM Y/Y growth (decline) (17%) (17%) (39%) (40%) (31%) N/A
    Invested capital (1) $ 9,147 $ 9,680 $ 10,006 $ 10,250 $ 10,392 N/A
    Return on invested capital (2) 17% 22% 12% 11% 10% N/A
    Common shares and stock-based awards outstanding 469 468 464 468 469 0%
    Common shares outstanding 455 455 450 452 453 0%
    Stock-based awards outstanding 14 14 13 16 16 12%
    Stock-based awards outstanding — % of common shares outstanding 3.2% 3.0% 2.9% 3.6% 3.6% N/A
    Results of Operations
    Worldwide (WW) net sales $ 10,876 $ 17,431 $ 13,185 $ 12,834 $ 13,806 27%
    WW net sales — Y/Y growth, excluding F/X 39% 34% 34% 32% 30% N/A
    WW net sales — TTM $ 43,594 $ 48,077 $ 51,404 $ 54,325 $ 57,256 31%
    WW net sales — TTM Y/Y growth, excluding F/X 39% 37% 37% 35% 33% N/A
    Operating income (loss) $ 79 $ 260 $ 192 $ 107 $ (28) (135%)
    Operating income — Y/Y growth (decline), excluding F/X (77%) (48%) (38%) (34%) (137%) N/A
    Operating margin — % of WW net sales 0.7% 1.5% 1.5% 0.8% (0.2%) N/A
    Operating income — TTM $ 1,076 $ 862 $ 732 $ 637 $ 531 (51%)
    Operating income — TTM Y/Y growth (decline), excluding F/X (25%) (44%) (50%) (50%) (48%) N/A
    Operating margin — TTM % of WW net sales 2.5% 1.8% 1.4% 1.2% 0.9% N/A
    Net income (loss) $ 63 $ 177 $ 130 $ 7 $ (274) (533%)
    Net income (loss) per diluted share $ 0.14 $ 0.38 $ 0.28 $ 0.01 $ (0.60) (534%)
    Net income — TTM $ 871 $ 631 $ 561 $ 377 $ 40 (95%)
    Net income per diluted share — TTM $ 1.89 $ 1.37 $ 1.22 $ 0.82 $ 0.09 (95%)
    Segments
    North America Segment:
    Net sales $ 5,932 $ 9,902 $ 7,427 $ 7,326 $ 7,884 33%
    Net sales — Y/Y growth, excluding F/X 44% 37% 36% 36% 33% N/A
    Net sales — TTM $ 24,014 $ 26,705 $ 28,667 $ 30,587 $ 32,540 36%
    Operating income $ 144 $ 285 $ 349 $ 344 $ 291 102%
    Operating margin — % of North America net sales 2.4% 2.9% 4.7% 4.7% 3.7% N/A
    Operating income — TTM $ 943 $ 933 $ 991 $ 1,120 $ 1,268 34%
    Operating income — TTM Y/Y growth, excluding F/X 1% (2%) 2% 14% 34% N/A
    Operating margin — TTM % of North America net sales 3.9% 3.5% 3.5% 3.7% 3.9% N/A
    International Segment:
    Net sales $ 4,944 $ 7,529 $ 5,758 $ 5,508 $ 5,922 20%
    Net sales — Y/Y growth, excluding F/X 33% 29% 32% 28% 27% N/A
    Net sales — TTM $ 19,580 $ 21,372 $ 22,737 $ 23,738 $ 24,716 26%
    Net sales — TTM % of WW net sales 45% 44% 44% 44% 43% N/A
    Operating income (loss) $ 116 $ 177 $ 49 $ 16 $ (59) (151%)
    Operating margin — % of International net sales 2.4% 2.4% 0.9% 0.3% (1.0%) N/A
    Operating income — TTM $ 790 $ 640 $ 515 $ 359 $ 183 (77%)
    Operating income — TTM Y/Y growth (decline), excluding F/X (23%) (41%) (49%) (57%) (68%) N/A
    Operating margin — TTM % of International net sales 4.0% 3.0% 2.3% 1.5% 0.7% N/A
    Consolidated Segments:
    Operating expenses (3) $ 10,616 $ 16,969 $ 12,787 $ 12,474 $ 13,574 28%
    Operating expenses — TTM (3) $ 41,860 $ 46,504 $ 49,899 $ 52,846 $ 55,805 33%
    Operating income $ 260 $ 462 $ 398 $ 360 $ 232 (11%)
    Operating margin — % of Consolidated sales 2.4% 2.7% 3.0% 2.8% 1.7% N/A
    Operating income — TTM $ 1,734 $ 1,573 $ 1,505 $ 1,480 $ 1,451 (16%)
    Operating income — TTM Y/Y growth (decline), excluding F/X (11%) (21%) (22%) (21%) (15%) N/A
    Operating margin — TTM % of Consolidated net sales 4.0% 3.3% 2.9% 2.7% 2.5% N/A
    AMAZON.COM, INC.
    Supplemental Financial Information and Business Metrics
    (in millions, except inventory turnover, accounts payable days and employee data)
    (unaudited)
    Q3 2011 Q4 2011 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q3 2012 Y/Y %
    Change
    Supplemental
    Supplemental North America Segment Net Sales:
    Media $ 1,927 $ 2,562 $ 2,197 $ 1,874 $ 2,215 15%
    Media — Y/Y growth, excluding F/X 21% 8% 17% 18% 15% N/A
    Media — TTM $ 7,767 $ 7,959 $ 8,270 $ 8,559 $ 8,847 14%
    Electronics and other general merchandise $ 3,635 $ 6,881 $ 4,772 $ 4,937 $ 5,061 39%
    Electronics and other general merchandise — Y/Y growth, excluding F/X 56% 51% 44% 41% 39% N/A
    Electronics and other general merchandise — TTM $ 14,992 $ 17,315 $ 18,784 $ 20,226 $ 21,652 44%
    Electronics and other general merchandise — TTM % of North America net sales 62% 65% 66% 66% 67% N/A
    Other $ 370 $ 459 $ 458 $ 515 $ 608 64%
    Other — TTM $ 1,255 $ 1,431 $ 1,613 $ 1,802 $ 2,041 63%
    Supplemental International Segment Net Sales:
    Media $ 2,226 $ 3,447 $ 2,513 $ 2,245 $ 2,385 7%
    Media — Y/Y growth, excluding F/X 17% 18% 22% 12% 12% N/A
    Media — TTM $ 9,238 $ 9,820 $ 10,261 $ 10,431 $ 10,590 15%
    Electronics and other general merchandise $ 2,681 $ 4,032 $ 3,203 $ 3,224 $ 3,497 30%
    Electronics and other general merchandise — Y/Y growth, excluding F/X 51% 41% 42% 42% 39% N/A
    Electronics and other general merchandise — TTM $ 10,199 $ 11,397 $ 12,314 $ 13,139 $ 13,956 37%
    Electronics and other general merchandise — TTM % of International net sales 52% 53% 54% 55% 56% N/A
    Other $ 37 $ 50 $ 42 $ 39 $ 40 7%
    Other — TTM $ 143 $ 155 $ 162 $ 168 $ 170 19%
    Supplemental Worldwide Net Sales:
    Media $ 4,153 $ 6,009 $ 4,710 $ 4,119 $ 4,600 11%
    Media — Y/Y growth, excluding F/X 19% 14% 19% 15% 14% N/A
    Media — TTM $ 17,005 $ 17,779 $ 18,531 $ 18,990 $ 19,437 14%
    Electronics and other general merchandise $ 6,316 $ 10,913 $ 7,975 $ 8,161 $ 8,558 36%
    Electronics and other general merchandise — Y/Y growth, excluding F/X 54% 47% 43% 42% 39% N/A
    Electronics and other general merchandise — TTM $ 25,191 $ 28,712 $ 31,098 $ 33,365 $ 35,608 41%
    Electronics and other general merchandise — TTM % of WW net sales 58% 60% 60% 61% 62% N/A
    Other $ 407 $ 509 $ 500 $ 554 $ 648 59%
    Other — TTM $ 1,398 $ 1,586 $ 1,775 $ 1,970 $ 2,211 58%
    Balance Sheet
    Cash and marketable securities $ 6,326 $ 9,576 $ 5,715 $ 4,970 $ 5,248 (17%)
    Inventory, net — ending $ 3,770 $ 4,992 $ 4,255 $ 4,380 $ 5,065 34%
    Inventory turnover, average — TTM 10.8 10.3 10.4 10.1 9.7 (10%)
    Fixed assets, net $ 3,999 $ 4,417 $ 4,653 $ 5,097 $ 5,662 42%
    Accounts payable — ending $ 6,552 $ 11,145 $ 6,886 $ 7,072 $ 8,369 28%
    Accounts payable days — ending 72 74 62 68 75 3%
    Other
    WW shipping revenue $ 360 $ 531 $ 461 $ 469 $ 517 44%
    WW shipping costs $ 918 $ 1,466 $ 1,129 $ 1,054 $ 1,153 26%
    WW net shipping costs $ 558 $ 935 $ 668 $ 585 $ 636 14%
    WW net shipping costs — % of WW net sales 5.1% 5.4% 5.1% 4.6% 4.6% N/A
    Employees (full-time and part-time; excludes contractors & temporary personnel) 51,300 56,200 65,600 69,100 81,400 59%
    (1) Average Total Assets minus Current Liabilities (excluding current portion of Long Term Debt) over five quarter ends.
    (2) TTM Free Cash Flow divided by Invested Capital.
    (3) Represents cost of sales, fulfillment, marketing, technology and content, and general and administrative operating expenses, excluding stock-based compensation.

    Amazon.com, Inc.

  • Kindle Is The Latest App To Join The Windows 8 Parade

    Microsoft is still partying like its 1995 up in New York City and for good reason – Windows 8 is launching at midnight. All the major software developers are joining in the fun by letting everybody know that their respective apps will be available on the Windows Store at launch. So far, Google, Hulu Plus, Skype, StumbleUpon, and Netflix have detailed their apps. Now it’s Amazon’s turn.

    Amazon announced today that the Kindle app is now available to all PCs running Windows 8. The app is everything consumers love about Kindle wrapped up in a Windows 8 touch-friendly package. The app features over 1.5 million books and over 200,000 exclusive titles that you can’t get anywhere else.

    “The Kindle ecosystem offers customers massive selection and the lowest prices, along with hundreds of thousands of books that are only available in the Kindle Store. We’re excited to make the best content selection, along with all of the benefits of the Kindle ecosystem, available on Windows 8,” said Dorothy Nicholls, Vice President, Amazon Kindle. “We’re thrilled that leading manufacturers have selected the Kindle ecosystem for pre-load on their new Windows 8 devices.”

    The app is free to download and works on all Windows 8 and Windows RT devices. It also features the same “Buy Once, Read Everywhere” promise that lets you purchase books on one device and access them from another via the same Amazon account.

    “We’re excited that Amazon created a Kindle app designed especially for Windows 8,” said John Richards, senior director of Windows App Marketing for Microsoft Corp. “Kindle’s great content ecosystem and immersive experience on Windows 8 make it a great choice for our customers around the world.”

    The Kindle app will come pre-loaded on some Windows 8 devices at launch. For everybody else, it’s available on the Windows Store.

  • Europeans Can Get Their Kindle Fire HD Fix Starting Today

    The Kindle Fire HD has already been available in the US for over a month. As such, it’s easy to forget that the newest gadgets take a while to reach other parts of the world. The Kindle Paperwhite just made it to Japan yesterday. Now some new Kindles are making their way across the Atlantic.

    Amazon announced today that the Kindle Fire and Kindle Fire HD are now both available to European customers. The Kindle Fire HD will retail for £159 while the newly updated Kindle Fire will retail for £129. Unfortunately, the Kindle Paperwhite is not available just yet as it ships on December 3. At that point, however, you can pick one up for £109.

    The Kindle devices will be the same across both the US and the EU except for one little difference. Amazon Instant Video won’t be available to EU customers, but Amazon’s own LOVEFiLM will be picking up the slack. All of the other impressive video features like Whispersync and X-Ray for movies are intact.

    “The minute customers turn on their Kindle Fire HD they will have instant access to our vast content ecosystem of apps, games, songs, books and magazines, plus thousands of fantastic movies and TV shows from LOVEFiLM,” said Jorrit Van der Meulen, VP Kindle, Amazone EU. “When combined with our unmatched cross-platform interoperability and standard-setting customer service, we’re sure UK customers will love Kindle Fire HD and Kindle Fire.”

    To sweeten the deal a little more, all new Kindle Fire HD and Kindle Fire purchases will come with a free month of LOVEFiLM. Existing subscribers will also soon be able to link their Amazon account with their LOVEFiLM account to create a single log-in experience.

    European customers can pick up the new Kindle Fire HD or Kindle Fire right now. Those who already pre-ordered the device should be getting them soon.

  • Kindle Paperwhite To Be The First Japanese-Language Kindle

    One of the more overlooked announcements from Apple’s event yesterday was that the iBooks now has support for Asian languages. Chinese, Korean and Japanese are all available in native right-to-left format with their own stores to support the titles available in these countries. It seems the announcement has forced Amazon’s hand to announce their own Asian expansion.

    Amazon announced today that the Kindle Store is now available in Japan with the Kindle Paperwhite being the first device to natively support the Japanese language. The device will have access to over 50,000 Japanese-language Kindle books and over 15,000 manga titles. The Wi-Fi Paperwhite will be available for a relatively cheap 8,480 yen ($106) and the Wi-Fi/3G version will retail for 12,980 yen ($162).

    “After twelve years of selling print books on Amazon.co.jp, we are excited to offer the millions of Amazon.co.jp customers the new Kindle Store, with the largest selection of the books people want to read, the largest selection of Oricon best sellers in books, bunko, and manga, and over 50,000 Japanese-language titles—all available to anyone with a Kindle Paperwhite, Kindle Fire, Android phone, Android tablet, iPhone, or iPad,” said Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com Founder and CEO. “Kindle Paperwhite is the Kindle e-reader we have always wanted to build—it has 62% more pixels and 25% higher contrast than the previous generation Kindle, built-in front light, perfect for reading in bed or in sunlight, even thinner, with 8 weeks of battery life.”

    The Japanese Kindle store will launch on October 25. The store will feature a number of exclusive titles from some of Japan’s most prolific authors including Arimasa Osawa and Yusuke Kishi. Amazon is also going to be pushing manga in a big way by making the latest volume of Neon Genesis Evangelion exclusive to the Kindle Store.

    The Kindle Fire HD is already available in Japan, but the Kindle Paperwhite is their first stab at offering eReaders in the country. Tablets are growing in popularity in Japan thanks to the iPad, but it’s hard to tell if eReaders will have the same success. The exclusive title are definitely a good first start.

  • Amazon Bolsters Parental Controls with FreeTime for Kindle Fire HD

    Attention parents: Amazon is hoping that a new update to the Kindle fire HD makes you feel more comfortable about leaving your children alone with the tablet.

    In the latest over-the-air update to hit the device, Amazon is introducing Kindle FreeTime, which “provides a dedicated space for kids to interact with books, movies, TV shows, apps, and games.”

    FreeTime allows parents to tailor their kids’ experience by hand-selecting what kinds of content they can access. Once a child is inside FreeTime, they can’t exit without a password. FreeTime also supports time limits, which allow parents to regulate the amount of content the kids can take in on any given day.

    Also in FreeTime: Multiple profile functionality. This way, parents can set up separate account for each of their children – because you obviously don’t want the same restrictions for a 5-year-old and a 12-year-old.

    Amazon tells developers that they don’t need to do anything special to be included in the kid-friendly apps:

    “As a developer, you don’t need to do anything to participate in Kindle FreeTime other than build great products. Simply by including them in the Amazon Mobile App Distribution Program, your apps will be available for parents to include in their children’s personalized experience,” says Amazon.

    Back in May, Amazon updated the Kindle Fire to give it some rudimentary parental controls. Parents could disable certain types of content, or block the Silk browser altogether. It also allowed for them to password-protect their purchases. FreeTime looks like it gives parents more specific control over the content by taking an opt-in approach.

  • iPad Mini Event Will Focus On Education

    iPad Mini Event Will Focus On Education

    Education is obviously important to Apple. The company took time out in January to devote an entire press conference to iBooks 2 and interactive textbooks. Since then, schools around the world have ditched books in favor of giving every student an iPad. The company may be putting the focus back on education again according to a recent report.

    Bloomberg reports that Apple’s iPad Mini event set for tomorrow will focus on education. The iPad Mini is set to be a much cheaper device with some reports saying it will only cost $250 for the standard model. It would be much easier for schools to outfit their student body with tablets.

    Apple’s iPad has already proven to be a leader in education, but it’s starting to face some stiff competition. Just last week, Amazon revealed Whispersync, a new software that allows schools to send out course materials to all Kindle owners across its network. A cheaper Kindle Fire and Whispersync could draw educators away from the iPad. The iPad Mini, with its rumored low price, could bring those educators back.

    Consumer technology is still the battleground in which all three companies – Apple, Google and Amazon – will be fighting over this holiday season. Education doesn’t have the long term year-after-year success like the consumer market, but educators are big upfront buyers. Where else is Apple going to sell thousands of tablets to a single party?

    Apple and Amazon will now be competing for educators’ dollars, but what about Google? Google’s main platform is the Web with hardware being just one mean to that end. I still wouldn’t be surprised, however, if Google were to announce some new education incentives of their own in the near future. That probably won’t happen at next Monday’s Android event, but there could be something early next year.

    Besides education and the iPad Mini, Apple will probably show off a few more things of interest at its last big press event of the year. We’ll be bringing you all the news as it happens. Be sure to check out our extensive iPad Mini coverage to catch up on all the rumors and leaks.