Saturday, April 27, 2013

Bigger Threat to Newspapers: Google or Amazon?

Jeff Bezos is in the disruption business. His latest target: printed news media. The Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN  ) founder led a $5 million investment round in Henry Blodget's online news site, Business Insider.

The pairing is interesting on multiple levels. Blodget at one time covered Bezos and Amazon as a financial analyst for Merrill Lynch, with disastrous results. He's rehabilitated his image in the years since. BI is a go-to-destination for many seeking market and business commentary. More than a few Motley Fool writings have appeared there.

Amazon, meanwhile, seems determined to shatter the very foundation of traditional media and publishing. Think of direct-to-Kindle books and self-produced television shows, for example. Now, by investing in BI, Bezos appears to be going after newspapers and traditional magazines, says Tim Beyers of Motley Fool Rule Breakers and Motley Fool Supernova in the following video.

Will he succeed? A digital newsstand of direct-to-Kindle commentary isn't out of the question, Tim says, and it could hurt traditional properties such as New York Times Co. (NYSE: NYT  ) . Please watch this short video to get Tim's full take, and then leave a comment to let us know where you see Business Insider fitting into Amazon's plans.

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