Bezos Says Amazon Has Topped 100 Million Prime Members

[DonViejo]

Source: Bloomberg News



By Spencer Soper
April 18, 2018, 5:18 PM EDT Updated on April 19, 2018, 7:21 AM EDT

-- Loyalty program is gaining traction overseas, signaling growth

-- Members pay for quick delivery, movie and music streaming

Amazon.com Inc. Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos said the e-commerce giant has exceeded 100 million paid Prime subscribers and will continue to invest to meet “ever-rising” customer expectations.

Bezos noted the milestone in his annual shareholder letter, published Wednesday. The letter is the founder’s opportunity to underline his long-term strategy for investors, seeking to bolster their confidence as he continues to plow Amazon’s money into expanding internationally, building a brick-and-mortar presence, and inventing new products like Echo speakers and the Alexa voice-activated digital assistant.

Prime subscribers pay monthly or annual fees in exchange for quick delivery of online orders, music and video streaming and free online photo storage. The memberships encourage consumers to shop more with Amazon to get their money’s worth, similar to warehouse clubs like Costco Wholesale Corp. Amazon took its memberships a step further with additional digital perks, and sells add-ons like a more robust music catalog for an additional monthly fee.

Amazon has kept its Prime subscriber number a closely held secret, forcing analysts to estimate the figure based on shopper surveys. Bezos’s comments show that Seattle-based company is selling Prime memberships overseas, demonstrating it can replicate its U.S. success abroad, said RJ Hottovy, an analyst at Morningstar Inc. Amazon is losing money with its international expansion, but investors will be patient if the company is gaining Prime subscribers, he said.

Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-04-18/amazon-s-bezos-says-company-has-topped-100-million-prime-members

[muntrv]

1. Keep talking, Trump! That number will top a billion!

[Sancho]

2. ...and they probably have not collected one bit of data on any of us!