On-line Retailer Amazon Enters Automotive Editorial Space - So What's Innovative or Improved, Amazon?

But First Snides' Remarks: When this press release came into The Auto Channel (ONLINE SINCE APRIL 1995) potential story bucket I eagerly opened it to see what kind of exciting breakthrough vehicle buyer tools a few million buck investment could develop...but alas it seems like none according to this Amazon Release.

I am still awaiting exciting new consumer friendly research tools to be revealed, because every feature Amazon is touting has been developed, implemented and perfected by The Auto Channel tech team over the past 15-20 years, except of course, the "community aspect". But as we have always said, how can a serious car shopper take more than just a cursory glance at an owners opinion of their car...they'll either love it or hate it, big whoopee, so who in their right mind will use a stranger's personal opinion to help decide their new car purchase decision. That's why for 21 years The Auto Channel has only published expert reviews and opinions exclusively written by our cadre of accredited, recognized and relevant professional auto journalists.

Welcome to the automotive editorial and data scrum Amazon, at the least I see a great opportunity for Amazon, with its deep pockets to disenfranchise the third party automotive sites that have relied on auto dealer classified advertising and consumer unfriendly Lead-Gen revenue needed to sustain their bloated organizations. Have a nice day, see you at the car shows.. msnide@theautochannel.com

SEATTLE--Aug. 25, 2016-- Amazon today announced Amazon Vehicles, a car research destination and automotive community that makes it easy for customers to get the information they need when shopping for vehicles, parts, and accessories. With Amazon Vehicles, customers can now view specifications, images, videos, and customer reviews for thousands of new and classic car models on Amazon.com, including everything from the 2016 Jeep Wrangler and 2014 Tesla Model S to the 2000 Chevrolet Corvette and 1965 Ford Mustang

“Our goal is to support customers during one of the most important, research-intensive purchases in their lives by helping them make informed decisions every step of the way,” said Adam Goetsch, Director of Automotive at Amazon.com. "Amazon Vehicles is a great resource for customers who are interested in car information or looking for a broad selection of parts and accessories – all enhanced by the ability to tap into the knowledge, opinions, and experiences of other car owners within the Amazon customer community.”

Amazon Vehicles features:

Research Tools: Customers can now view comprehensive detail pages complete with specifications, images, videos, and customer reviews for thousands of new and classic car models. Finding cars on Amazon Vehicles is simple – just search like you would any other product or browse by year, make, model, customer rating, MPG, towing capacity, and more. .
Community Engagement: Customers can browse tens of thousands of customer reviews on Amazon Vehicles, including uploaded images and videos, as well as submit their own. Customers can also ask other car owners questions about their vehicle – anything from “Can you fit two car seats comfortably?” to “How does this car perform in the snow?”
One-Stop Shop: Amazon Vehicles is an extension of the Amazon Automotive store, which enables customers to add information about their current car to the Amazon Garage for shopping parts and accessories designed specifically for that vehicle. To-date, more than 35 million customers have saved their car(s) to the Amazon Garage.