Amazon’s LoveFilm nabs streaming rights to Vikings

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The Vikings are coming to Amazon. LoveFilm, Europe’s leading movie subscription services that Amazon bought in 2011, just gained exclusive streaming rights in the U.K. and Germany for the popular television series Vikings. This marks the first time that a show has been distributed on LoveFilm before hitting the cable networks or traditional broadcast stations. All nine episodes… Read More…

Amazon’s 3D smartphone screen would break the mold

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How’s this for a crazy story? The Wall Street Journal reports today that Amazon.com is working on “a high-end smartphone featuring a screen that allows for three-dimensional images without glasses.” The report is a surprise because Amazon has been focusing more on lower-cost hardware that it can sell at or near cost, undercutting its competitors while aiming… Read More…

Maritz: Netflix ‘inextricably bound into Amazon for all eternity’

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Is Netflix depending too heavily on Amazon? That’s one of the questions raised by a cover story about Netflix in the new issue of Bloomberg BusinessWeek magazine. The piece by Ashlee Vance focuses on Netflix’s recovery but also includes the back story on Netflix’s decision to go with Amazon Web Services for cloud computing rather… Read More…

Amazon Cloud Player enables iOS update, allows music streaming in Ford vehicles

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Good news for Ford and iPhone owners wanting to blast their tunes with Amazon’s Cloud Player: Amazon’s streaming music service updated its iOS app today to allow iPod Touch, iPhone or iPad devices to play music in Ford Sync AppLink-enabled vehicles. Last February, Amazon is brought its Cloud Player music service to vehicles equipped with Ford Sync AppLink, including new Mustangs,… Read More…

Amazon opens Appstore in China; Kindle coming next?

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Amazon’s app store is officially open for business in China. The Seattle online retail giant debuted its app store for Chinese customers this past weekend, Reuters reported. Amazon’s newest store offers an alternative to Google Play for those in China. Unlike Google, Amazon’s store features both paid and free options. Reuters noted that Amazon is… Read More…

Microsoft’s $300M Nook deal: One year later, it’s MIA

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One year ago, Microsoft and Barnes & Noble surprised the tech world by announcing a “strategic partnership.” Microsoft made a $300 million investment in the bookseller’s Nook e-reader and e-book subsidiary, for a 17.6 percent stake. The deal was completed in October, making Microsoft a key ally for Barnes & Noble in its struggle vs. Amazon’s Kindle…. Read More…

A giant sucking sound: Seattle startup CEOs say Amazon is sucking up all of the tech talent in the city

A sign outside Amazon's HQ in Seattle shows the company's amazing appetite for new hires. Photo: Matt Shobe

It’s tough enough to do a startup, let alone when you’re competing for talent against a juggernaut like Amazon.com. I’ve heard that a lot in recent weeks, especially as the Seattle online powerhouse continues to gobble up engineers, developers and executives from the startup ranks (most recently Charlie Kindel, and before that entire teams of… Read More…

Amazon’s Kindle Fire dips back below 4% market share

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Maybe the Kindle Fire really is the “fruitcake of tablets.” Worldwide market share for Amazon’s family of tablets dropped to 3.7 percent in the first quarter, according to new data from the IDC research firm, which says the Kindle Fire was the “victim of a highly seasonal product cycle.” In other words, lots of people are… Read More…

CHART: Tablet market soaring, now almost two-thirds the size of PC market

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The market for tablets is continuing to climb dramatically, reaching 49.2 million units shipped worldwide in the first quarter, up from 20.3 million units a year earlier, according to an IDC research report issued today. That’s in sharp contrast with the market for traditional computers. An earlier report by IDC said that PC shipments declined… Read More…