Amazon.com Inc has started offering its Prime free shipping service in China, ratcheting up attempts to compete with Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (阿里巴巴) for the rising number of shoppers hankering after overseas goods.
From yesterday, Chinese Prime subscribers get free shipping on orders exceeding 200 yuan (US$29.49) on millions of eligible overseas goods, the company said in an e-mailed statement.
Domestic goods are also to be delivered free and a membership costs 388 yuan a year, lower than the US$99 fee. Amazon China representative Wu Shanhan said membership would not include access to any digital content.
Since its inception in 2005, Amazon Prime has attracted more than 65 million members in the US with free delivery perks and access to a growing library of videos and music.
The program has been credited with fostering customer loyalty, driving spending and has been steadily expanded over the years to include digital content.
Amazon, which has made little headway against Alibaba, is focusing on the demands of a growing middle class seeking goods from abroad.
Amazon’s global logistics network is to manage shipping and final delivery to each Chinese customer, it said.
Packages are estimated to arrive within five to nine days in 82 cities across the country, with single orders of more than 2,000 yuan requiring additional time, the company added.
The introduction of Prime also comes as Wal-Mart Stores Inc launches several initiatives through a tie-up with JD.com Inc (京東), Alibaba’s closest domestic rival, to deliver goods ranging from American vitamins to Japanese hand cream to more than 90 percent of China’s 1.4 billion consumers.
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