SEATTLE--May 16, 2000--Leading online retailer Amazon.com (www.amazon.com) and NextCard (Nasdaq:NXCD), the leading issuer of consumer credit on the Internet, today introduced the unique Amazon.com NextCard Visa, offering the latest in credit card technology and the ability to earn rewards points that can be redeemed for Amazon.com gift certificates.
Consumers can apply for the card now through the Amazon.com Web site.
NextCard is the exclusive provider of Amazon.com cobranded credit cards for a five-year period. Available in attractive platinum or classic cards featuring the Amazon.com and NextCard logos, the Amazon.com NextCard Visa can be used for purchases both online and offline and has no annual fee.
The Amazon.com NextCard Visa offers 30-second online approval and access to online services such as statement viewing and payment, account alerts, balance transfers, and Internet-enabled chat with customer service representatives. Approved applicants will be presented with up to three credit card offers from which they can choose. Offers are tailored to each individual's credit profile and might include terms as low as a 2.99 percent introductory rate or a 9.99 percent ongoing rate.
The Amazon.com NextCard Visa Rewards points program is the first and only credit card program that offers customers the opportunity to earn points toward free Amazon.com merchandise. Enrollment in the Rewards program is free for cardholders. All purchases on the NextCard cobranded cards earn rewards points, which can be redeemed for Amazon.com gift certificates. In addition, purchases made on Amazon.com using the cobranded Visa card earn triple rewards points, allowing Amazon.com's more than 20 million customers to earn Amazon.com gift certificates even faster.
"With the launch of the Amazon.com NextCard Visa, we are not only helping our customers find, discover, and buy anything they want online, but also showing our thanks by rewarding them with gift certificates based on credit card spending," said Joe Galli, Amazon.com president and COO. "The combination of Amazon.com's online retail expertise and NextCard's online credit card experience creates a valuable new shopping alternative that offers strong appeal to our customers and to all credit card users."
"We are very excited to partner with Amazon.com in offering such a valuable product to Internet consumers," said Jeremy Lent, chairman and CEO of NextCard. "The combination of Amazon's great customer focus and NextCard's Internet credit card leadership has allowed us to create a highly valuable product for Amazon's customers."
About NextCard
NextCard, Inc. (www.nextcard.com) is considered the leading issuer of consumer credit on the Internet. Launched in 1997, the company was the first to offer instant online credit card approval, a choice of customized credit card offers, personalized PictureCard designs, and exceptional online customer service. NextCard is committed to providing the most robust consumer shopping experience on the Internet and has continued to innovate with its complete GoShopping! service, NextCard Concierge one-click shopping companion, online bill payment services, and comprehensive rewards program.
NextCard is also one of the leading direct marketers on the Internet, operates a network of more than 40,000 online affiliates, and has exclusive card relationships with leading brands, including Amazon.com and Priceline.com. The Company owns minority stakes in Flooz.com, the premier online gift currency, and Paytrust.com, the leader in online bill payment.
Ranked the No. 1 credit card that Internet consumers would consider for use (according to ZDNet's 1999 BrandIQ study), NextCard was named a top 50 financial Web site by Money magazine, a Hot 100 company by Upside magazine, and one of The Standard 100 most important and influential companies in the Internet economy by The Industry Standard in 1999. NextCard was nominated for a 2000 Webby Award in the finance category.
About Amazon.com
Amazon.com (Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries) is the Internet's No. 1 music, No. 1 DVD and video, and No. 1 book retailer. Amazon.com (Nasdaq:AMZN) opened its virtual doors on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth's Biggest Selection, along with online auctions and free electronic greeting cards. Amazon.com lists more than 18 million unique items in categories including books, CDs, toys, electronics, videos, DVDs, home improvement products, software, and video games. Through Amazon.com zShops, any business or individual can sell virtually anything to Amazon.com's more than 20 million customers, and with Amazon.com Payments, any seller can accept credit card transactions, avoiding the hassles of offline payments. The company also participates in sothebys.amazon.com, the leading auction site for guaranteed art, jewelry, and collectibles, at www.sothebys.amazon.com.
Amazon.com seeks to be the world's most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they may want to buy online. Amazon.com's All Product Search scours the Web to help customers find merchandise that is not available at Amazon.com, Amazon.com Auctions, or Amazon.com zShops, making Amazon.com the shopping destination to find anything. Amazon Anywhere is the leader in mobile e-commerce, providing access from anywhere in the world to Amazon.com on personal digital assistants (PDAs) and through hand-held wireless Internet devices that use HDML or the Wireless Application Protocol.
Amazon.com operates two international Web sites: www.amazon.co.uk and www.amazon.de. It also operates the Internet Movie Database (www.imdb.com), the Web's comprehensive and authoritative source of information on more than 220,000 movies and entertainment programs and 800,000 cast and crew members dating from the birth of film in 1892 to 2003.
Amazon.com has invested in leading Internet retailers that are improving the lives of customers by making shopping easier and more convenient: Greenlight.com, the only company that offers car buyers the control of auto purchasing online with ongoing service and support from local dealerships, at www.greenlight.com; living.com, the leading online home products and services retailer, at www.living.com; drugstore.com, an online retail and information source for health, beauty, wellness, personal care and pharmacy, at www.drugstore.com; Pets.com, the online leader for pet products, expert information, and services, at www.pets.com; HomeGrocer.com, the first fully integrated Internet grocery-shopping and home-delivery service -- with operations in Seattle; Portland, Oregon; and Southern California -- at www.homegrocer.com; Gear.com, which offers brand-name sporting goods at prices from 20 to 90 percent off retail, at www.gear.com; Ashford.com, the leading Internet retailer of luxury and premium products and the Web's No. 1 retailer of watches and jewelry, at www.ashford.com; Audible, Inc., the leader in Internet-delivered spoken audio for PC-based listening or playback on AudibleReady portable digital audio devices, at www.audible.com; eZiba.com, a leading online retailer of handcrafted products from around the world, at www.eziba.com; and WineShopper.com, the San Francisco- and Napa-based Internet start-up that will ultimately offer consumers online access to the largest selection of wines available anywhere, at www.wineshopper.com.
Amazon.com also has a minority interest in Della.com, which brings together leading retailers with gift registry, expert advice, and personalized gift suggestions to help everyone give better gifts, at www.della.com; NextCard, Inc., considered the industry's leading issuer of consumer credit on the Internet, at www.nextcard.com; and Kozmo.com, the world's leading "e-mmediate" Internet-to-door delivery service, at www.kozmo.com.
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, Amazon.com's limited operating history, anticipated losses, significant amount of indebtedness, unpredictability of future revenues, potential fluctuations in quarterly operating results, seasonality, consumer trends, competition, risk of distribution center expansion, risks related to fourth quarter performance, risks of system interruption, management of potential growth, inventory risks, risks related to auction and zShops services, risks related to fraud and Amazon.com Payments, and risks of new business areas, international expansion, business combinations, and strategic alliances. 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, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1999.