Amazon and Apple have signed a deal that will allow Amazon to sell a wide selection of 2018 iPad Pro, iPhone, Apple Watch, and Mac devices in its online storefront in a number of countries, including in the U. S., the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Japan, and India.
CNET:
Only Apple-authorized resellers will now be allowed to sell Apple and Beats products on Amazon’s marketplace.
Currently, many of these Apple products are either unavailable on Amazon or are on sale only through its third-party marketplace at varied prices and conditions. Amazon does already directly sell some Apple devices, such as MacBook laptops and Beats headphones.
Independent sellers offering new and used Apple products on Amazon will see their listings removed after January 4, 2019. If a seller applies to become an Apple authorized seller, they’ll once again be allowed to sell their products in the online retailer’s storefront.
“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,” an Amazon spokesperson said Friday in a statement. “We look forward to expanding our assortment of Apple and Beats products globally.”
Some Apple products, such as Apple’s HomePod speaker, won’t be sold on the website. The HomePod directly competes with the retail giant’s Alexa-based Echo lineup of smart speakers.
The online retailer previously banned Apple TV streaming devices form their storefront, as they competed with their own Fire TV streaming devices. However, upon the debut of the Amazon Prime Video app on the Apple TV platform, the sales ban was lifted.
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