US online giant Amazon is preparing to take on Google in one of its core businesses, Internet advertising, the Wall Street Journal said Friday, citing sources familiar with the matter.<\/p>\n
Amazon is developing its own program to target ads using the information it gathers about the preferences of its customers.<\/p>\n
Tests of the new platform could start later this year, the business daily said.<\/p>\n
Google is for now the uncontested top dog in online publicity, with around a 31.45 percent share of the global market this year, according to figures from research firm eMarketer.<\/p>\n
The company earns around $50 billion a year from its advertising business, compared to the just $1 billion Amazon is expected to earn this year, the Wall Street Journal said.<\/p>\n
From its beginnings as an online bookstore, Amazon has enormously expanded its activities over the years. Among other businesses, the company has become a major seller of digital content, including ebooks, streamed video and online music, as well as of devices like smartphones and tablets.<\/p>\n
It has also become a marketplace where third-party venders can sell products, taking advantage of Amazon’s massive customer base.<\/p>\n
Amazon launches mobile payment app<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n