A roundup of Amazon’s hot events of the week!

1. IKEA stops its pilot program, and big brands are leaving Amazon

On January 12, IKEA announced that it would no longer continue a pilot program with Amazon that began in 2018, becoming another brand to cut ties with Amazon. IKEA said in a statement that it was moving away from the company because Amazon was "keen to explore new areas" to attract consumers.

It is reported that IKEA is developing its own online market on Kaola, which has similar functions to Amazon. In fact, before IKEA, Nike and Birkenstock also chose to withdraw from the Amazon platform. The reason for Nike's withdrawal was that some counterfeit products on the platform were very cheap, but the quality was not much different from the original ones, which had a serious impact on the brand's sales.

Unless these businesses’ e-commerce strategies can compete with Amazon’s customer-obsessed mindset, experts say abandoning Amazon could backfire.

2.   eBay bans sale of Kongming lanterns and launches compliance inspection

On January 12, eBay recently issued an announcement stating that considering the potential fire hazards posed by sky lanterns, according to the platform's product safety policy, eBay has banned the listing and sale of this item worldwide.

eBay has launched relevant compliance inspections around the world and has removed related listings. Non-compliant items will be removed from the shelves, and accounts that violate the rules multiple times may be restricted.

It is understood that most countries prohibit the use and sale of Kongming lanterns, and reports of fires caused by Kongming lanterns are not uncommon. The eBay announcement of a ban on the sale of Kongming lanterns may be related to a recent serious fire caused by Kongming lanterns in Germany, which caused serious property losses.

In addition to eBay, AliExpress included Kongming lanterns in the list of the 18th category of prohibited sales on the platform in 2017, and they will be banned from sale in Argentina, Austria, Australia, Brazil and other countries. Some countries have also formulated strict regulations on the production and sale of Kongming lanterns to ensure public safety.

3. Amazon and eBay will assist CBP in strictly reviewing overseas packages

On January 10, Amazon, eBay and shipping companies will send data on small or low-value packages from abroad to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

The move is reportedly part of a CBP pilot program. CBP announced Thursday that the Section 321 data pilot is a voluntary collaboration with online marketplaces and logistics providers to ensure the security of e-commerce supply chains. Last month, it expanded the scope of the pilot and extended it to August 2021.

Currently, the pilot program is limited to nine participants, including Amazon, eBay, DHL, FedEx and UPS. Through the pilot program, CBP will also conduct more efficient targeted screening of goods.

4. It is said that Amazon's profit in 2018 exceeded 10 billion US dollars, but the tax paid was less than 300 million

On January 12, it was learned that according to foreign media reports, Amazon made a profit of 10.1 billion US dollars in 2018, but only paid less than 300 million US dollars in taxes.

Amazon paid $297 million in business, sales, property and local use taxes, as well as unemployment insurance, in 2018, according to a person familiar with the matter. In 2017, the figure was $250 million.

The above two data also confirm the rumors that the Seattle City Council will increase taxes on Amazon. In 2018, there were reports that Amazon and the Seattle City Council were in a game of "head tax". At present, Seattle City Council member Keshama Sawant said that he would launch the so-called "Amazon 2020 Tax" campaign at his swearing-in ceremony.

It is reported that the news comes at a time when Amazon's hometown of Washington is debating with other states over how much tax technology companies should pay, and it is unclear what impact it will have.

5. eBay's Spring Festival holiday logistics arrangements: Gradually stop picking up from January 14

Cross-border e-commerce platform eBay recently released an announcement on the holiday arrangements for logistics suppliers during the 2020 Spring Festival holiday. The announcement shows that logistics collection in cities across mainland China will gradually stop from January 14, 2020, and will gradually resume from January 28.

The last collection day for eBay's SpeedPAK logistics for Lanzhou, Gansu, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, Yinchuan, Ningxia, Kunming, Yunnan, and most cities in Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, and Sichuan provinces is January 14; the cities that will stop collection the latest are Beijing, Chongqing, Hefei, Anhui, Chengdu, Sichuan, Wuhan, Hubei, Nanyang and Zhengzhou, Henan, some cities in Guangdong, and most areas of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai.

The time for resuming collection is from January 28 to 31. Among them, the collection time for most areas of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shanghai and parts of Guangzhou will resume on January 28, the collection time for Chongqing, Hefei, Anhui, Chengdu, Sichuan and parts of Zhejiang and Jiangsu will resume on January 29, and the collection time for other areas will resume on January 31.

6. 2020 Amazon US seller fee changes: Furniture and other sales commissions reduced

Amazon Global Selling released the "Summary of Amazon US Fee Changes in 2020" announcement. The announcement shows that in 2020, Amazon US fee changes will mainly focus on sales commissions for some categories and Amazon Logistics (FBA) related fees. In addition, the "Amazon Logistics New Product Selection Program" is newly launched.

Starting from February 18, 2020, Amazon US will reduce sales commissions for several major categories of goods, including shoes, handbags and sunglasses, outdoor furniture, personal care products and sportswear.

In terms of logistics costs, Amazon officially stated that starting from February 18, 2020, Amazon's logistics delivery fees will be slightly increased, with an average increase of 3%.

In terms of the fees for the Amazon Logistics Small and Light Program, after February 18, 2020, Amazon US will combine the order processing fee, pickup and packaging fee, and first weight and additional weight fees into one delivery fee, which will be charged per piece based on weight.

Amazon officially announced that it will launch the "Amazon Logistics New Selection Program" in the United States, Europe and Japan on April 1, 2020. On Amazon US, eligible Amazon Logistics New Selection ASINs will have the opportunity to receive free monthly storage, free removal and free return processing.