Amazon announced on Thursday, June 2, that it would soon close all the Kindle bookstore outlets in China. This means that people could no longer buy the popular e-reader in the country.
Amazon Kindle Bookstores to Close Down Soon
According to a report by CNN, Amazon confirmed that all the digital Kindle stores in China wouldn't offer e-books anymore. This will be effective beginning July 2023.
The e-commerce giant clarified that current users could still download the online books they previously bought until June 2024. Additionally, Amazon will no longer ship Kindle e-readers to the local retailers in the country starting June 2.
In a recent statement, the tech giant said that the long-term commitment of Amazon China to the buyers wouldn't change. This means that the company's other businesses in the country will continue operating amid the decision.
The company is the latest company to pull out its business in the country following the Chinese government's implementation of the data privacy law. The policy monitors the tech firm's activities in gathering and storing data, per ABC News.
Corporate Withdrawals in China
Other notable companies which withdraw their operations in the country include Airbnb and LinkedIn. The former arrived by the making a corporate withdrawal from the country because of the rising mounting costs, which grew worse amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, the job site platform officially halted its operation in China in October 2021. LinkedIn said it was experiencing a "significantly more challenging operating environment" in the country.
Amazon's First Trip to China
The first time that Amazon touched down in mainland China was in 2004. At this time, the e-commerce firm had just completed the acquisition of digital music seller Joyo.com.
This opportunity had given the company a leeway to explore the market. Three years ago, Amazon decided to shut down its local marketplace (digital) in the country. This barred the customers from purchasing products sold by Chinese vendors.
Amazon has not yet disclosed the reason why it ended up doing that. Amid the growing competition, JD.com and Alibaba have stepped up to compete with the Seattle-based company.
In other news, the global smartphone shipments have reportedly plunged by 3% this year because of several factors. One of the major indicators of the decline is the ongoing issue between Russia and Ukraine.
Aside from that, China's strict COVID-19 protocols have contributed to the decreasing shipments of handheld devices. It affected the whole economy and even the investors in the country.
Additionally, the high inflation in the world market is also one factor to consider why phone shipments have suddenly declined. Still, the unstable US interest rate is also one reason for this scenario.
This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by Joseph Henry
