After tasting enormous success in the tablet segment and stealing away the market shares of Apple iPads, Amazon is now planning to capture the Cupertino giant's iPhone market dominance. Latest reports from Bloomberg are swirling rapidly in the tech media word that the world's largest online retailer has inked a partnership with Foxconn to manufacture its very own smartphone.
Apart from the mentioned information, no other details are available at the moment. But if the rumors come out to be true and Amazon is prepping up to the smartphone arena to compete with iPhone, then its phone has to come packed with some impressive specs, unlike the Kindle Fire which was a budget offering.
The Kindle Fire tablet technically runs on Android, and its software was so heavily modified that many have speculated in the past that the company could apply the same formula to the mobile space. Adding to that, recent reports from Skyhook's CEO also stated that a "major" new Android phone outside the Google Play ecosystem would be launched this year.
According to The Verge reports, they have assumed that "Amazon also currently runs its own Appstore for Android, which offers both apps for the Kindle Fire and a curated selection for devices from other manufacturers. With this and Amazon's robust content selection across music, movies, and books, a hypothetical smartphone would have a ready-made ecosystem to slot right into."
Further, Bloomberg's sources didn't give any indication as to when such a phone might appear, but Amazon is reportedly working on building up a wireless patent portfolio that would allow it to release the device without fear of infringement allegations.
Moreover, this isn't the first time tech gossip world is filled with the rumblings of Amazon working on a smartphone of its own. Citigroup analysts suggested last November that the Seattle-based e-commerce giant was working with Foxconn to develop a smartphone slated for release in the fourth quarter of 2012.
Analyst predict that Amazon may not have the same brand value when it comes to smartphones but it does run the world's most popular online store, where it can advertise the phone on every page. This, coupled with the content from its store and possibly an attractive price tag means the Amazon smartphone could be a success, just like the Kindle Fire.
