A reminder that Amazon sells stuff but is really a web services company
Amazon sells a lot of stuff, but it doesn't make all that much money from it.
Amazon also helps power the web, and it makes a lot of money from it.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) accounted for more than half of the company's overall profits in the second quarter of 2016, helping the company beat expectations.
You May Also Like
For years, investors had waited for Amazon to turn its ability to generate a ton of money through sales into meaningful profit. If the last few quarters are any indication, that time has come.
Amazon shattered earnings expectations with its second-quarter earnings on Thursday, bringing in far more profit ($1.78 per share) than had been anticipated ($1.11).
Amazon brought in a total of $30.4 billion in the quarter, up 31% compared to the same period last year.
CEO Jeff Bezos said in a press release that the company is particularly focused on growth in India.
"It’s been a busy few months for Amazon around the world, and particularly in India — where we launched a new AWS Region, introduced Prime with unlimited free shipping and announced that Prime Video is coming soon, offering Prime members in India exclusive access to Amazon Original Series and Movies — including original content featuring top Indian creators and talent," said Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com. "The team in India is inventing at a torrid pace, and we’re very grateful to our Indian customers for their welcoming response."
This is Amazon's fifth-straight profitable quarter, a pleasant surprise for investors that had grown nervous that Bezos -- who has openly said he doesn't care much what Wall Street thinks of his company -- had no plans to push the company to make more money than it spends.
Amazon Web Services (AWS), which power much of the Internet, continued to be a bright spot for the company. While its sales are a relatively small part of the company, the business now contributes more profits than its overall North America operations.
In the second quarter, AWS generated $718 million in profit compared to $702 for North America.
Amazon noted that AWS has launched in the Asia Pacific region, which will help continue to grow the service.
Topics Amazon
Jason Abbruzzese is a Business Reporter at Mashable. He covers the media and telecom industries with a particular focus on how the Internet is changing these markets and impacting consumers. Prior to working at Mashable, Jason served as Markets Reporter and Web Producer at the Financial Times. Jason holds a B.S. in Journalism from Boston University and an M.A. in International Affairs from Australian National University.
