Amazon.com, Inc AMZN has launched a pharmacy service in the South Indian city of Bengaluru, Reuters reported Friday.
What Happened: Amazon Pharmacy, the Jeff Bezos-led company’s online drug retail service, has begun operations and will soon deliver across the burgeoning Indian city, the company told Reuters.
The online pharmacy will provide both over-the-counter and prescription drugs along with traditional Indian medicine and basic health devices.
It isn't immediately clear whether Amazon plans to expand the service to other cities in India soon.
Why It Matters: The online drug space in India is crowded with operators such as Medlife, Netmeds, Temasek-backed PharmEasy, and Sequoia Capital-backed 1mg, which compete with traditional pharmacies even though the Indian government has not finalized regulations for such sales, Reuters noted.
In 2018, the e-commerce giant acquired PillPack, an online pharmacy in the United States, which was at that time thought to give Amazon a headstart in the web-based pharmaceutical retail space.
The acquisition of PillPack opened the doors for the e-commerce giant to collaborate with Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-A) (NYSE: BRK-B) and JPMorgan Chase & Co JPM on a joint venture focussed on employee health.
Price Action: Amazon shares traded nearly 0.2% higher at $3,167 in the after-hours session on Thursday.
Photo courtesy: faismeen via Wikimedia
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