90 million Amazon Prime subscribers, chances are good that you are a part of that group. Their large consumer base doesn’t come as a surprise considering the wide array of products and services Amazon is engaged in. Their offerings include everything from tablets, grocery delivery, music and video streaming, machine learning and not to mention Alexa, the handy digital assistant present in homes and integrated into their products.
While not all ventures can be successful (looking at you, FirePhone), it’s clear that Amazon is definitely not afraid of taking risks. If you need further proof of their enterprising spirit, in 2017 they announced intentions to enter the pharmaceutical market. It’s hard to believe there is anything that Amazon doesn’t have a stake in, but one such example is their surprising absence when it comes to online messaging platforms.
The star player in this field right now is Slack, a comparatively small company founded in 2014 that has quickly become the go-to app for companies needing online messaging. Slack boasts over 6 million daily users and the number has only continued to grow. Companies including Microsoft, Facebook and Apple have all shown their desire to compete with Slack by launching or beefing up their own platforms. Apple’s Business Chat entered its Beta trial and Microsoft Teams has grown to over 200 thousand organizations. Despite this, Amazon has been noticeably absent.
Could Amazon be keeping their own project a secret? It’s not impossible, but it’s rumored that Amazon is looking to purchase Slack. This means they fully understand the value that integrating online messaging platforms would have for their customers and their profits. Even if they don’t acquire Slack, it wouldn’t come as a surprise to me if Amazon debuts their own platform this year, further expanding their empire and moving one step closer to world domination.
Want more insights from our expert network? Subscribe to the Worthix Newsletter for a monthly summary of all things Customer Experience, and be the Voice of CX in your workplace or friend group.
Meet the Worthix Content Team. We’re dedicated to bringing our readers value from the crossroads of CX thought leaders, industry experts, on-the-ground CX practitioners and top academics from around the world.