Well, here’s yet another business that Amazon.com is looking to dominate.
The Information (subscription required) reports today that the online retailing giant and cloud computing powerhouse is considering offering broadband Internet service to consumers in Europe, possibly allowing the company to offer the service as part of a bundle with Prime video.
It would not be the only tech giant playing around with the idea of offering Internet service. Google Fiber is now available in a few U.S. cities, offering an alternative to Internet service providers like Comcast and CenturyLink.
Amazon as an ISP could strike fear in competitors, since the company typically operates at extremely low margins, passing the value back to consumers in hopes of selling them additional products and services.
It’s unclear how Amazon would implement such a service, and if a U.S. offering — similar to Google Fiber — could be in the cards. Ars Technica notes that a U.S. launch is unlikely, since embedded Internet service typically have not opened their networks to other companies.
But, as we’ve learned with Amazon, if there’s a business opportunity available, they are probably thinking about it.
