It may have started with a quiet rollout, but a recent announcement shows that it’s AmazonLocal‘s time to get loud. According to Amazon, their Groupon-esque deals service will start displaying bargains on their Special Offer-oriented Kindles when a new software update goes live in coming weeks.
AmazonLocal, which came about due to Amazon’s partnership with LivingSocial, is currently live in 44 markets across 15 states — not bad for a service that’s only been live for a few months. Kindle owners will be able to take advantage of offers in New York City, Seattle, Philadelphia, and Chicago, just to name a few.
The Special Offers Kindle will be able to detect the user’s location, and display any nearby deals for that day. Users will be able to purchase those available deals directly from the Kindle without having to whip out their credit card, as the payment will be likely be processed from whatever card Amazon already has on file. Once all that is taken care of, users can mosey on up to the counter, flash their Kindle, and enjoy their savings.
It’s a logical move by Amazon, but it’s brilliant nonetheless. By releasing the Kindle with Special Offers, Amazon has already managed to target a presumably well-read audience who have made it known that they enjoy a bargain. In shoehorning AmazonLocal onto those Kindles, Amazon can get deals out to people who may be more likely to bite the bullet than others.