Many people believe that Amazon will have a difficult time topping its 2011 accolades. Last year, the company opened its own App store, released the Kindle Fire, and launched a cloud storage service – and that was just the start.
What does the new year hold for Amazon? Here are three predictions to keep an eye on as the months go by:
Bigger Sales and Improvements for the Kindle Fire
According to many industry insiders, Amazon sold more than 5 million Kindle Fire tablets during the fourth quarter of 2011. By riding this momentum, you can expect bigger and better things for this device in the new year.
Although unconfirmed, reports have surfaced regarding a Kindle Fire with a bigger screen. While welcomed by some, many worry about what this will do to the low price – which as of now is one of the biggest benefits of this tablet.
Sales Tax Issue Gets Resolved
In short, Amazon is exempt from charging sales tax in most states because the company does not have a physical presence required by the law in that state. While this has led to major issues (no longer eligible for the program) for affiliates in some states, we expect this to get cleared up sooner rather than later.
The state of Indiana recently resolved this issue with Amazon, with the web retailer agreeing to start collecting sales tax in 2014. With this, the state is expected to generate another $20+ million in annual sales tax revenue.
Amazon Prime Poised for Big Growth
With Amazon Prime, customers have access to everything from two-day shipping to movies and television shows to free books and much more. In 2012, expect the company to throw a lot of time and money at this service. Premium accounts could come into play, possibly offering greater access to free magazines, music, and apps.
As the company continues its attempt to convert customers into users, doing so through the Amazon Prime service makes perfect sense.
Jan 10, 2012 by Chris Bibey in Amazon Associates Program
