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Amazon and Best Buy Team Up to Sell Smart TVs
Retail Rivals Amazon and Best Buy Team Up to Sell Smart TVs [wsj.com]
Rivals Amazon.com Inc. and Best Buy Co. are joining forces to sell television sets powered by Amazon's Fire TV operating system.
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly revealed the partnership on Tuesday at a Best Buy store in Bellevue, Wash. The companies will sell 11 models, starting this summer with TVs by Toshiba and Best Buy house brand Insignia. Best Buy will feature the Amazon-powered TVs for sale in its stores and on its website, and also become a merchant on Amazon's website, where it will sell these TV sets exclusively.
"What we're doing is so deeply integrated," Mr. Bezos said, acknowledging the fact that his company and Best Buy are often considered rivals. "It's only possible because we trust each other."
The two companies say they have been partners for years, and Amazon products such as Kindle e-readers have long been sold in Best Buy stores. But the new partnership brings potential benefits for both companies as sales of so-called smart TVs continue to climb.
And of course, the Fire TV Edition sets will spread ALEXA even further.
Best Buy press release [bestbuy.com]. Also at CNN [cnn.com] and The Mercury News [mercurynews.com].
Related: Amazon's Alexa Adds Ability to Order from Best Buy [soylentnews.org]
