Amazon has signed a brand new deal with Apple, that will allow the latter to directly list and sell some of its most popular products – namely iPhones, iPads and Apple Watches — on the eCommerce portal.
In case you are thinking that “Oh, I have already seen iPads/iPhones/Apple Watches listed on Amazon”, well, those are the ones that have been listed by third party vendors. Not only are they sometimes not as reliable as devices sourced directly through Apple, but they often have prices that vary from the official MRPs set by the Cupertino based tech giant.
The brand new deal will see Apple push out its devices through Amazon stores in, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Japan, and India. Apple will start off by selling its own devices as well as those under its Beats brand. However, Apple will not be allowed to list products that conflict directly with Amazon’s products. So, for instance Apple’s HomePods, which compete directly with Amazon’s Alexa powered range of speakers will be conspicuous by their absence.
Speaking with The Verge, an Amazon spokesperson said:
Amazon is constantly working to enhance the customer experience, and one of the ways we do this is by increasing selection of the products we know customers want. We look forward to expanding our assortment of Apple and Beats products globally.
This is also bad news for folks selling Apple devices on Amazon, and affiliated platforms. As per the terms of the deal, they will now have to become Apple resellers before they are allowed to sell the Cupertino giant’s products through the Amazon platform. Current listings apart from those posted by certified Apple resellers will be taken down by the 4th of January.
