Tuesday, December 10, 2024

Artificial Intelligence news

How to use Sora,...

MIT Technology Review’s How To series helps you get things done.  Today, OpenAI released its...

The US Department of...

The US Department of Defense has invested $2.4 million over two years...

OpenAI’s new defense contract...

At the start of 2024, OpenAI’s rules for how armed forces might...

Google DeepMind’s new AI...

Google DeepMind has unveiled an AI model that’s better at predicting the...
HomeTechnologyAmazon in talks...

Amazon in talks to offer mobile services to Prime members


Shares of Verizon Communications, AT&T and T-Mobile US declined on Friday after a report said Amazonwas in talks with the telecom firms to offer low-cost wireless services to its Prime members.

Bloomberg News reported that Amazon was negotiating to get the lowest possible wholesale prices and could offer wireless plans for $10 a month or lower to Prime members through the partnerships, including a possible tie-up with Dish Network.

“We are always exploring adding even more benefits for Prime members, but don’t have plans to add wireless at this time,” an Amazon spokesperson said in response to a Reuters query.

Several analysts said the online retail giant’s entry could lead to major disruptions in the telecom space as it could offer cheaper plans in a country with some of the highest wireless charges in the world.

“Amazon could certainly put a lot of its weight behind it and undercut competitors,” said Christopher Ali, professor of telecommunications at Penn State University. “We might actually see cell phone prices go down, which would be a great thing.”


The reported talks come as Amazon faces a slowdown in new sign-ups for the Prime service.
Erik Pendzich/Shutterstock

Amazon’s shares rose 1.2% and were among the top boosts for the benchmark S&P 500 Index, while Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile fell between 3.2% and 5.6%.

AT&T declined to comment, while Verizon and T-Mobile denied the talks. Dish did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.

Brandon Nispel of KeyBanc Capital Markets said Dish Network, a relatively new entrant in wireless, could be the most likely partner for Amazon.


Dish Network satellite dish
Amazon and Dish Network have held talks.
REUTERS

He said a deal would give Dish access to financing that could help build out its network, while the other carriers were not likely to partner with Amazon as “they obviously don’t want to change the status quo of the industry.”

Dish’s shares defied the sectoral gloom to rise 16%. They had also rallied in May after a Wall Street Journal report that Dish was in talks to sell its wireless plans through Amazon.

For Amazon, a deal could draw more customers to its Prime service at a time growth in key markets including the US has plateaued.


Verizon logo
Shares of Verizon slumped following the news.
REUTERS

The company’s revenue growth slowed to its lowest in at least 20 years in 2022 as businesses and consumers cut back on spending in a tough economy.

“Several possible benefits may accrue from such a move including improving Prime member retention rates, allowing it to slightly increase annual subscription costs and providing Amazon a direct channel to the lucrative multi-billion dollar market of selling and financing mobile phones,” said Michael Ashley Schulman, chief investment officer at Running Point Capital Advisors.



Article Source link and Credit

Continue reading

Inside Nvidia’s takeover of the world of AI

There are two reasons to write a business book, according to Brad Stone, author of “The Everything Store.” You’re either writing a thriller or a how-to-manual. In “The Nvidia Way,” veteran technology journalist Tae Kim manages to do...

Frank McCourt’s TikTok bid has $20B in ‘informal commitments’: report

Billionaire Frank McCourt has reportedly secured $20 billion in investor commitments toward a potential acquisition of China-owned TikTok – an effort that could gain steam after a federal appeals court upheld Congress’s law requiring a sale of the...

TikTok sale-or-ban law upheld by federal appeals court

A law requiring TikTok’s Chinese parent ByteDance to sell the app by Jan. 19 or face a total US ban was upheld in US appeals court on Friday – setting up a potential Supreme Court showdown in the...