Nearly four years after buying the Washington Post, Amazon chief Jeff Bezos is taking steps to commingle his companies, tapping each of his consumer bases to pitch the other.
Subscribers first noticed a shift earlier this year when they were asked to sign into their accounts via their Amazon number.
A longtime subscriber emailed in May: “I am a WaPost subscriber. When I access the website, it offers the option to sign in using my email account or using my AMAZON account information. Thus, WaPo subscribers and Amazon are aggregating data on subscribers/consumers.”
Bezos has promised to use his internet and online sales smarts to bolster the Post and reports indicate it is working well.
And on Thursday, an email from Amazon showed up offering a Washington Post newsletter.
“Please enjoy this complimentary daily newsletter from The Washington Post, an award-winning news leader, brought to you by Amazon, working to be Earth’s most customer-centric company,” it said.
The newsletter led with this headline: “‘Something fishy’ is going on with Trump’s Twitter account, researchers say.”
One subscriber said the newsletter was offered to Amazon users earlier this year.
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected]
