Amazon ditches grocery fee in home delivery market battle
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San Francisco: Amazon ditched its grocery delivery fee on Tuesday in the retail giant’s latest attempt to corner the home delivery market, putting pressure on competitors such as rival Walmart.
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The company said it was dropping the additional $15 monthly fee for existing users of its Amazon Fresh delivery service, which is available through its Prime subscription program.
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“Grocery delivery is one of the fastest growing businesses at Amazon, and we think this will be one of the most-loved Prime benefits,” said the firm’s vice president Stephenie Landry.
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Prime membership costs $119 annually and includes video streaming services along with free, fast delivery of many Amazon purchases.
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It will now also include delivery of meats, seafood, produce, snacks and household items in some 2,000 towns and cities, according to the Seattle-based company.
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“We’ve also improved delivery speed with one and two-hour options in most Amazon Fresh cities, and we’ll continue expanding ultrafast speeds to all cities where the service is available,” Amazon said in a blog post.
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Amazon owns Whole Foods Market grocery store chain, which offers its own free delivery options.
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Offering free delivery throws down the gauntlet to competitors including retail colossus Walmart, which charges a $12.95 monthly fee for the convenience.
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