Sites in Germany, United Kingdom Increase the Convenience and Service of Online Shopping
SEATTLE, Oct. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading online retailer Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) formally entered the European market today with the launch of new Web sites in Germany and the United Kingdom.
Amazon.de and Amazon.co.uk opened their virtual doors on the World Wide Web early this morning, replacing sites once operated by ABC Bücherdienst in Germany and Bookpages, Ltd., in the U.K. Amazon.com purchased both companies in April.
For the first time on a local basis, the sites make available to Europeans a vast selection, guaranteed safety of transactions, unparalleled convenience, and electronic gift certificates for worry-free gift giving.
In addition, the two sites will significantly reduce the cost of and shipping time for thousands of U.S. titles, thanks to a large supply of the most popular U.S. titles ready for immediate shipment from the U.K. and Germany. In addition, thousands of other U.S. titles will be delivered much sooner from Amazon.com facilities in the United States.
Both sites will feature many of the customer features developed by Amazon.com: personalized recommendations, the ability to search for and locate books in a variety of ways, hundreds of browsing lists compiled by specific categories of bestselling books, reviews by experts and customers, easy and secure 1-Click(TM) ordering, and Amazon.com's attention to customer service.
"Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.de will provide a whole new level of convenience and customer service for book buyers," said Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com's founder and CEO. "These are stores that are open around the clock where people can find the specific books they want and discover others they may also like to buy. It combines the power of the Internet with a very personalized experience."
As at Amazon.com, ordering is secure at Amazon.de and Amazon.co.uk. Personal information and credit card numbers are encrypted for transmission over the Internet, and all transactions are backed by a security guarantee protecting shoppers from unauthorized use. Full details are available at www.amazon.de and www.amazon.co.uk.
Amazon.de is headquartered in and has a distribution center in Regensburg and editorial and marketing offices in Munich. The store will initially feature 335,000 titles from German publishers, fast and easy access to 374,000 U.S. titles, swift delivery, and, soon, an array of recommendation features to better serve book buyers, including instant recommendations. A Munich-based staff of expert German editors will develop reviews and recommendations of German-title books.
Amazon.co.uk is headquartered in and has a distribution center in Slough, England. The store carries a complete catalog of 1.2 million U.K. titles in print, fast and easy access to 200,000 U.S. titles, and speedy delivery. A staff of expert U.K. editors will provide recommendations and reviews.
About Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc., offers more than 3 million book, music, and other titles, plus easy-to-use search and browse features, secure credit card payment, personalized recommendations, and direct shipping. Amazon.com has virtually unlimited online shelf space to offer customers a vast selection easily accessed through an efficient search-and-retrieval interface, as well as streamlined ordering through 1-Click(TM) technology. Amazon.com pioneered the concept of syndicated selling on the Internet and has more than 100,000 members in its Associates Program, including AOL.com, Yahoo!, Netscape, Excite, the AltaVista Search Service, the @Home Network, and iVillage.
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, Amazon.com's limited operating history, the unpredictability of its future revenues, and risks associated with capacity constraints, management of growth, and new business opportunities. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com's financial results is included in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1997, and quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 1998.
Amazon.com, Earth's Biggest Bookstore, and 1-Click are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. All other names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.