is the Amazon.com free shipping bargain ending?

[terracore]

"Amazon's expansionist spending spree is taking its toll. Beyond the $126 million loss, it said it expects to lose up to $810 million in the upcoming quarter — compared with a $25 million loss in the third quarter last year.

Forrester analyst Sucharita Mulpuru blamed the loss solely on Amazon's Prime program, which offers two-day free shipments to customers for $99 a year.

"Google, Apple and Facebook invest all the time in innovation, and don't have losses like this," she says. "The big difference is Amazon is spending all this money on shipping those orders."

The costs of free shipping are larger than Amazon expected when it started the program. Amazon, she says, has "created a beast they now have to feed."

http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2014/.../13107009/

Haven't all of us bought something with free shipping that cost less than what we know shipping alone would have been? If Amazon is looking at losing a billion dollars total through next quarter, I'm sure they are going to take a long hard look at Alaska and Hawaii shipments and our gravy train could come to an end. If you've been on the fence about ordering that large/heavy/bulky item.... maybe get it sooner rather than later.

I know somebody who sells a product on Amazon.com for $16.99 and his prices as a merchant have skyrocketed over the last year and a half, with Amazon now taking almost $7 of that $16.99. I don't think they can squeeze much more out of the merchants, so the customers are next.

[csgray]

If they squeeze too hard people on the mainland will buy other places. They've squeezed their workers as hard as they can absorb too.

Carol
fixed stupid typos

[Tink]

They moved their distribution warehouse from East of Oakland California to East of Reno Nevada. Taxes are different for them to their advantage, and using the nearby reservation for workers with a savings of .75 per hour on minimum wage on Ca to Nv difference as well. I guess every corporate structure is in the greed, ahem, "profit" mode with the consumer at bay. Grandpa was right in saying long ago " new and improved!" Meant "new price at improved profit"!

Community begins with Aloha

[ericlp]

dunno, if amazon stops shipping for free I'll just have to buy local like at sears or walmart / target / costco.

It's not just Amazon that would lose out but, the post office and fed ex would lose out as well. I would imagine if they cut out free shipping than maybe the shipping companies would charge lower to keep the business flowing.

As it is, Amazon just raised the prices to 35 for free shipping...Maybe they should consider 50 bucks? or even 75? I wonder how much business Amazon keeps for fed ex or UPS to fly to the big island. If prime got cut out, I dunno I think my online purchases would be reduced by at least 70%. I think if the charged 200 bucks for prime it would be a bit much for most. I just can't really believe that they are losing that much $$ over "prime" ...




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[terracore]

Amazon is a huge company, literally the world's largest online store. I don't think they'll end free shipping, but I wouldn't be surprised if they got smarter about shipping things so that they don't take a loss on so many shipments. Who knows, maybe they will get big enough to buy out one of the major shipping companies, or even start their own? Economic downturns are hell on shipping companies, the 2008 saw DHL and a few others go out of business. There is an economic downturn on the horizon, maybe amazon will be able to pick up a shipping company cheap?

[macuu222]

I believe they will continue shipping free two day with Amazon Prime with no increase in the fee...but Alaska and Hawaii might be out of the equation.

[OrchidIslander]

That analyst is probably the only analyst who has blamed prime's free shipping solely for Amazon's losses. Amazon addressed prime's shipping losses by increasing prime membership from $79.00 to $99.00. Most other analyst consider Amazon's focus on plowing revenue back into the business to be excessive. Construction costs for new distribution centers, experimentation with drone delivery and costs incurred with the relatively cheap Kindle Fire tablets, Fire phones and Fire TV adapters - among others. Revenue is up but they spend it all - plus some - expanding and innovating the company. A pay now reap the rewards later mindset which is testing stockholders' patience.

[Lin W]

Both Target and Walmart offer free shipping with orders of a certain $ amount, and when you get to checkout, shipping is indeed free. However, both add a "Hawaii surcharge" that is equal to or greater than the order total, effectively doubling the cost. Amazon could opt to do similar, but let's hope not.





I don't know how I got over the hill without getting to the top.

[leilanidude]

Macy's usually offers free shipping on orders of $100 or more, and if you sign up for their on-line specials, can routinely get offers of an extra 10 to 20 per cent off entire orders.

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

Better check this out while Amazon still has free shipping to Hawaii:

Create Your Own 3D Printed Bobble Head Doll
(don't forget to click the "Personalize Now" button on the right)
(even comes with a choice of green skin color - the perfect gift for when the first starship lands in Kalapana?)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KC7FA5Q/ref=s9_hps_bw_g484_i4?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-3&pf_rd_r=0QB7792WJ0V271468KSZ&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1870995442&pf_rd_i=8323871011