Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN) Faces Drone Challenge from Google

On the 26/07/2016, Amazon.com, Inc. was given approval from the British government to test its delivery drones in the UK. The Civil Aviation Authority granted the American retail giant access to the UK countryside to test its drones. Some campaigners were “horrified” after it emerged that Amazon had flown a drone over a historic, Roman road near Cambridge.

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Google, which is owned by Alphabet Inc, is now allowed to test its drones in America, after the American Federal Aviation Administration granted the company approval to test drones weighing less than 25 KG. International financial services firm, PWC has estimated that the drone market is worth $127 billion.

An article published on The Telegraph explains that America is trying to accelerate market growth. It reads “Under the plans announced by the White House – which include $35m to support research – Project Wing will carry out experiments with drones at six approved test ranges, aiming to developed unmanned aircraft and the technology needed to allow them to fly autonomously. The company plans to fit its drones with small radio transponders that broadcast their location so other aircraft know where they are, helping make the research safer.”

Amazon.com, Inc. is using the technology to speed up delivery times, and potentially lower costs. Some security experts and analysts have warned that this sort of tech poses several risks (as it could be hijacked.) For example, the drones could be used in terror attacks or as part of organized crime.a

As the NASDAQ closed on the 03/08/2016, a share in Amazon.com, Inc. had lost 0.78% of its value, falling by $5.94. The company’s stock is valued at $754.64, giving the retail giant a market cap of $354.42 billion. Amazon has experienced a rapid increase in profits (almost 1,000% increase) in the past 12 months or so, propelling its CEO, Jeff Bezos, to third place in the world’s rich list.

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