Amazon has begun telling merchants that it will be shutting down Webstore, its e-commerce platform that allows small businesses to run their own online stores using the company’s technology, according to posts made on a forum for Amazon sellers and a report by Re/code.
Webstore customers will have a while to find a replacement, however. According to the postings, the service won’t be shutting down until June 1, 2016, which means people who rely on it for conducting business can take their time evaluating other products like Shopify.
Amazon isn’t the only company getting out of the business of providing a platform for small businesses to build their own online stores. eBay announced that it will be shuttering its Magneto Go service, which provides similar functionality. It’s a field that has grown increasingly competitive in recent years, with companies like Shopify and Bigcommerce raising lots of money to provide a dedicated experience for small businesses.
The news comes as Amazon also works to transition online retailers who use Amazon Payments away from its Flexible Payments Service product and towards its new Login and Pay with Amazon product. That move has also caused a good deal of disruption for small and medium business owners, and was one of the causes behind Patreon’s recently-announced acquisition of competing crowdfunding site Subbable.
A representative for the company declined to comment on this report.
