Amazon to invest $233 million in India to expand operations infrastructure, improve tech
(Reuters) -Amazon will invest more than 20 billion rupees ($233 million) in India in 2025 to expand and update its operations infrastructure, develop new technology for its fulfilment network and improve delivery safety, it said on Thursday.
The investment builds on top of Amazon's prior investments for the creation of an operations network to deliver to all serviceable pin-codes in the country, it added.
In June 2023, the e-commerce major - which competes with Walmart's Flipkart and billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Retail in India - had said it will take its investments in the country to $26 billion by 2030, without providing a breakdown.
The new investment will be used to launch new sites and upgrade existing facilities across its fulfilment and delivery network, improving speed and processing capacity, it said.
Additionally, Amazon plans to use technology to alert delivery associates about unsafe speeds and ensure equitable distribution of delivery routes.
Some of the funds will also be used to expand initiatives to improve the health and financial well-being of its employees, the company said.
In March, India's information technology ministry said Amazon's cloud services provider, Amazon Web Services, will invest about $8.2 billion in the country.
($1 = 86.7100 Indian rupees)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
19 minutes ago
- Forbes
The Real Reason Target Is Failing While Walmart Prospers
The Real Reason Target is Failing While Walmart Prospers The history of modern retail is often the history of the people who founded the companies that became household names. As such, you might say that many legendary, successful brands have souls or a set of basic principles that somehow outlast their founders. It also follows that there is often a price to pay when companies lose or sell their souls or stray from their principles. For example, Ray Kroc gets credit for growing McDonald's into a global phenomenon but it was the founders—McDonald brothers Richard and Maurice—who came up with the Golden Arches design and whose obsession with operational efficiency remains the North Star of the company's management today. When McDonald's tried to introduce salads and gourmet sandwiches in the early 2000s, customers balked and the stock price cratered. It took three years of getting back to its principles for the price to recover. Target, the struggling discount department store, is the latest example of a brand that has lost its soul. The principal behind the 1962 launch was co-founder Douglas Dayton, grandson of the founder of Dayton's, a popular up-scale chain of department stores in the Midwest. Target began as a discount store that aimed to 'combine the best of the fashion world with the best of the discount world.' The logo represented 'hitting the mark'—the quality/value sweet spot. The approach worked so well that by the 1990s customers had conferred on it the Frenchified sobriquet 'Tar-jay' which, according to one industry observer, signaled, 'It's cheap but attractive, it's common but somehow chic, it feels easy and guilt-free.' In 1995, to compete with Walmart's growing fleet of supercenters, Target began adding grocery sections to its big box stores. The case could be made that it was the moment the company began to stray from its roots. Target had no DNA in the food business. Grocery stores operate on the thinnest of margins and chic or attractive has nothing to do with marketing commodities like eggs and bread. Target was trying to be Walmart and Target at the same time. Walmart—also launched in 1962—began as a general merchandise discount store in rural Arkansas, at the time possibly the least-chic place in America. The company's motto: "Everyday Low Prices,' or 'Always.' The first Walmart Supercenter opened in 1988 and included the now-ubiquitous full-scale grocery section. Walmart, which is today still significantly owned by descendants of founder Sam Walton, did not try to be Target by, for example, up-scaling its general merchandise. Instead, it built its grocery business into a juggernaut of sales—nearly 60% of its 2025 revenue of $681 billion. Although general merchandise is where Walmart generates the bulk of its profits, the grocery aisles drive foot traffic. Examples of consumer-facing companies that have lost their way abound. As we noted last year, Starbucks founder Howard Schultz came out of retirement twice—in 2008 and again in 2022—to rescue the company after it had drifted away from its community-centric marketing and store culture. You also don't have to look far to find examples of companies that have managed to nurture a good idea or business model for the long term. In many cases, what helps sustain a brand are significant shareholders who are members of the founding family, as in the case of Walmart. Target shares are widely-held, mostly by institutional investors, and there apparently are no Dayton descendants around to influence how the company is run who keep it true to its heritage.
CNET
27 minutes ago
- CNET
BenQ GP520 Projector Review: Big Bright Picture, Itty Bitty Box
7.8 / 10 SCORE BenQ GP520 $1,499 at Amazon Pros Highly accurate, lifelike color Lots of light Great size Cons Contrast ratio is below average No zoom BenQ GP520 7.8/10 CNET Score $1,499 at Amazon Since the introduction of HDR, movies and TV shows have gotten brighter and more colorful, and TVs and projectors are doing the same to take advantage of this enhanced content. BenQ's GP520 is a compact, 4K projector with colors that are fantastically lifelike and accurate -- which is quite an achievement given how bright it is. The GP520 has Google TV built in, and its size should let it fit just about everywhere. Notably, it bucks the current trend of gimbal stands by offering an optional stand that lets you place and position it just about anywhere. While the GP520's contrast ratio isn't particularly good, the picture quality is still impressive. Overall, the BenQGP520 is a great projector in a fairly tiny package. Specs and such Geoffrey Morrison/CNET Resolution: 4K HDR-compatible: Yes 4K-compatible: Yes Lumens spec: 2,600 Zoom: No Lens shift: No LED life (Normal mode): 30,000 hours (ECO mode) Despite its size, the GP520 has a fairly standard set of specs for a projector in this price range. There's 4K resolution and HDR compatibility, but there's no zoom or lens shift. BenQ's own HT2060, which is only 1080p yet cheaper, has both. On the other hand, the similarly priced JMGO N1 Ultra and Xgimi Horizon S Max are both 4K but also lack zoom. BenQ's marketing suggests it doesn't expect the GP520 to be permanently mounted, nor paired with a dedicated screen, so the lack of zoom and lens shift is probably not a huge deal. Rated at 2,600 lumens, I measured 1,258 in its most accurate Cinema mode. This puts it right in the same ballpark as the JMGO, Xgimi and Anker Nebula Cosmos 4K SE. In its less accurate, and very-green Bright mode, I measured an eye-watering 2,166. This is a very bright projector. The contrast ratio, however, is below average at 369:1. That's not great, but it is in line with many of the brighter, 4K projectors I've reviewed in the last few years. The aforementioned Anker was 232:1, for example, while the more expensive Xgimi Horizon Ultra only managed 316:1. Nearly all projectors in this price range, other than Epson, use TI's DLP chips, and there are only a few variations for home projector use. So it's not too surprising to see them perform similarly in this metric. Like many new projectors, the GP520 has some automatic setup features to adjust color and keystone based on position and wall color. These features, in any projector, will reduce the image quality. I acknowledge that they can make setup easier and faster for people unfamiliar with projectors, especially if the projector is regularly moved between rooms. They're here if you want to use them, though spending a few minutes positioning the projector correctly will result in a better image. Connections Geoffrey Morrison/CNET HDMI inputs: 2 USB port: 3 (1 USB-C, 1 USB-A, 1 USB-A for service) Audio output: eARC, 3.5,mm headphone output Internet: Wireless Remote: Not backlit Two HDMI inputs seem like the right number for a projector like this. It's not that much of a stretch to assume most people might have two sources, like an Xbox and a PlayStation. If you'd prefer a different streaming service instead of the built-in Google, there's a USB connection on the back to power a streaming stick. There's also eARC if you want to send the audio back to a soundbar or receiver. Using external speakers is always a good idea, though I imagine the GP520 will be used on its own more often than not. To that end, there are two 12-watt speakers that sound quite good. Well, quite good considering the size of the box they're in. They play loud enough that you can understand dialogue, though given their physical restrictions, they don't have much bass. Picture quality comparisons JMGO N1 Ultra Xgimi Horizon S Max The JMGO N1 Ultra, Xgimi Horizon S Max and BenQ GP520 are three closely matched projectors. They're all 4K, similarly sized and equivalently priced -- the JMGO is $100 cheaper than the GP520, while the Xgimi is around $400 more. Both the JMGO and Xgimi are on gimbals, while the BenQ can instead be mounted to a stand in several configurations. I connected them all to an HDMI distribution amplifier and watched the same content on all three at the same time, side-by-side, on a 1.0-gain screen. Geoffrey Morrison/CNET Despite a wide discrepancy of claimed brightness -- JMGO's 4,000 lumens, Xgimi's 3,100 and BenQ's (closer) 2,600 -- they all measured comparably, and picture quality was similar, too. They're all bright, highly detailed and have reasonably accurate color. There's no "bad" option, but their differences do make for an interesting comparison. For instance, in their most accurate modes, technically, the Xgimi is very slightly the brightest at 1,300 lumens. The BenQ manages nearly the same brightness, just 42 lumens less, but is more accurate. It's worth noting that the BenQ is capable of more light than the Xgimi in their brightest modes. While the differences in brightness between the three aren't obvious side by side, their differences in color definitely are. The various mounting possibilities for the GP520. The stand and mount are sold separately. BenQ The BenQ is a very accurate projector. Skin tones especially look noticeably better on the BenQ compared to the others. The Xgimi is close, but many colors look a little off, including Caucasian skin tones, which look a little pasty. The JMGO is even farther from accurate, with a slightly cooler color temperature and more oversaturated colors. On their own, the JMGO and Xgimi look pleasing enough, but the more accurate a display is, the more lifelike it looks, and the BenQ has that advantage here. Where it stumbles a bit is with contrast. It has the lowest of these three, and that results in an image that, while not washed out, does look less punchy than the JMGO's 926:1. Is it a huge difference? No, but it is noticeable. Despite being less accurate and very slightly dimmer, the eye gets drawn toward the JMGO because of that higher contrast ratio. Each definitely has its strengths and weaknesses, and there's no wrong answer here. That said, between the three, I think I'd still choose the GP520 because its color accuracy does lend a more natural look. Bitty box The blue ring around the lens is quite stylish. Geoffrey Morrison/CNET Given my tepid response to the home theater-specific W2720i, it's probably a surprise (to BenQ, almost certainly) that I like the GP520 far more despite worse performance in the most important aspect of picture quality: contrast ratio. That largely comes down to intention and price. Being a projector designed for a dedicated theater, I had higher expectations for the W2720i, especially since it cost $2,000. The GP520 costs 30% less, is brighter and still looks great. It's also far smaller. Vastly different intentions, for sure, but assuming it fits in my room (remember, no zoom), I'd pick the GP520 over the W2720i. Though honestly, if fit wasn't an issue, I'd still get the short-throw X500i over both. Looking outside of BenQ, it's a little harder to say. The excellent color accuracy really sets the GP520 apart compared to the JMGO and Xgimi, both of which have roughly similar size, intent and overall performance. I didn't even bother comparing the GP520 to the Anker Cosmos 4K SE, which is basically the same price, since that projector has worse color and contrast. The BenQ's mediocre contrast ratio is a bit of a bummer, but in this class of projector, it's rare to find one with a good contrast ratio. The JMGO is the highest of these four projectors, and it's just barely above average for what I've measured. So the GP520 is bright, has great color, sounds good and is a great size. It's a very good, though not quite great, projector that will easily fit in a lot of spaces. It's a bright box of lovely colors.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Netflix vs. Amazon: Which Streaming Giant Has Better Upside Potential?
As the streaming wars intensify and technology giants vie for consumer attention, Netflix NFLX and Amazon AMZN represent two distinctly different approaches to capturing entertainment dollars. While Netflix has built its empire as a pure-play streaming specialist, Amazon leverages its vast ecosystem encompassing cloud computing, e-commerce, and Prime Video to create a diversified entertainment and technology companies reported strong first-quarter 2025 results, with Netflix beating earnings expectations significantly and Amazon demonstrating robust growth across its segments. The streaming landscape continues evolving rapidly, with both companies investing heavily in content, technology, and new revenue streams like advertising and live delve deep and closely compare the fundamentals of the two stocks to determine which one is a better investment now. Netflix's investment thesis centers on its position as the dominant pure-play streaming platform with significant operating leverage and multiple emerging growth drivers. The company's first-quarter 2025 performance demonstrated strong fundamentals, with healthy subscriber growth and robust retention metrics despite economic headwinds. Management emphasized that engagement remains strong, with no significant changes in plan mix or churn patterns, showcasing the platform's advertising opportunity represents Netflix's most compelling growth catalyst. The company expects to roughly double its advertising revenues in 2025, driven by its proprietary ad tech platform rollout across markets. With ads currently representing a small fraction of total revenues, this business line offers substantial upside as Netflix expands programmatic capabilities and enhanced targeting features. The ad-supported tier starting at $7.99 provides accessibility during economic uncertainty while creating new monetization content strategy continues to strengthen its competitive moat. Recent announcements include major investments exceeding 1 billion euros in Spain through 2028, new partnerships like the TF1 Group distribution deal in France, and an expanding pipeline of original content across multiple genres and regions. The company's live events strategy, including the successful NFL Christmas games and upcoming Taylor-Serrano fight, demonstrates its ability to create water-cooler moments that drive subscriber acquisition and gaming initiative, while still nascent, represents another growth vector with minimal cannibalization risk. Netflix's approach focuses on premium, ad-free gaming experiences tied to popular IP, potentially unlocking value from the $140 billion gaming market over has also set ambitious but achievable targets, including doubling revenues by 2030 and achieving $9 billion in annual advertising revenues by the same year. The company's advertising business represents a significant growth opportunity, with the successful launch of Netflix's Ad Suite in the United States on April 1 and international expansion planned for this quarter. Management expects advertising revenues to double in 2025, creating a new revenue stream that complements its successful subscription Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 earnings is pegged at $25.32 per share, indicating 27.69% growth year over year. Netflix, Inc. price-consensus-chart | Netflix, Inc. Quote Find the latest earnings estimates and surprises on Zacks Earnings Calendar. Amazon's investment case rests on its diversified business model and dominant positions across multiple high-growth markets. AWS remains the crown jewel, generating $29.3 billion in quarterly revenues with 17% growth and expanding to a $117 billion annualized run streaming investment thesis centers on Prime Video's unique ecosystem integration, creating structural advantages over standalone services. Unlike subscription-dependent models, Prime Video leverages cross-subsidization from profitable retail and cloud operations, enabling aggressive content spending without immediate profitability pressure. This allows competitive bidding for premium content while offering streaming essentially "free" within Prime Video's recent content pipeline demonstrates strategic diversity. The upcoming slate includes Shiny Happy People: A Teenage Holy War, Sausage Party: Foodtopia, Hotel Costiera starring Jesse Williams, and the documentary series Simple Plan: The Kids In The Crowd. This programming spans multiple genres across 240+ territories, creating broad demographic appeal while leveraging Amazon's global distribution infrastructure. The company's retail transaction data enables premium targeting capabilities, commanding higher ad rates than traditional streaming platforms. With advertising revenues reaching $13.9 billion and growing 19% year over year, this monetization potential extends directly to Prime Video's across Alexa, Fire TV devices, and the broader Amazon ecosystem creates multiple content discovery touchpoints, enhancing user engagement. Amazon's $25.9 billion free cash flow provides sustained investment capacity for content acquisition and original Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 earnings is pegged at $6.17 per share, which indicates a jump of 11.57% from the year-ago period. Inc. price-consensus-chart | Inc. Quote Both stocks trade at premium valuations reflecting their market leadership positions and growth prospects. Netflix trades at 44x forward earnings, while Amazon commands a similar premium of 32.09x across its diversified business segments. However, Netflix's more focused business model offers greater transparency and predictability in financial forecasting, potentially leading to multiple expansions as advertising and other initiatives gain traction. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Netflix's recent price performance reflects investor confidence, with shares climbing 37.1% year to date, outperforming Amazon, which lost 3.1%. Netflix's pure-play exposure to the streaming market provides more direct upside leverage to cord-cutting trends and global streaming adoption. Amazon's diversification offers stability but may limit the impact of streaming success on overall valuation, given AWS and retail's larger revenue contributions. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Netflix emerges as the superior choice for investors seeking upside potential. Netflix's focused streaming strategy, combined with early-stage advertising monetization and innovative content approaches, provides clearer paths to accelerated growth. The company's operating leverage model means that incremental revenue gains flow more directly to profitability. Additionally, Netflix faces fewer regulatory headwinds than Amazon's sprawling empire, while its global content investments and live events strategy create differentiated value propositions. For investors willing to embrace a pure-play streaming bet, Netflix offers better risk-adjusted upside potential in the evolving entertainment landscape. NFLX and AMZN currently carry a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) each. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Inc. (AMZN) : Free Stock Analysis Report Netflix, Inc. (NFLX) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research Sign in to access your portfolio
