Amazon doesn’t want to be just another stop on the information super highway, it wants to be the highway. Bloomberg News reports that Amazon has tested a new wireless network that could give Amazon products independent connectivity. You and your Kindle could get an Amazon-tailored web experience wherever you are, whenever you access the web. This might mean your location and web habits would be more closely tracked by Amazon, but it’s nothing different from what Google users are already largely immune to. Neither Amazon nor Globstar, Inc. (the satellite communications company Amazon is allegedly working with) have confirmed Bloomberg's report yet. Still, we can't help but feel an Amazon WiFi network would be a sign that the e-commerce king is eyeing a future in the smartphone market. A sized-down Kindle that lets you make calls via Amazon's WiFi anywhere in the world? Now that would be innovative.
And Amazon provides the internet
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By Berit Anderson
Berit Anderson was Managing Editor at Crosscut, following tech, culture, media and politics. She founded Crosscut's Community Idea Lab. Previously community manager of the Tribune Company’
Berit Anderson was Managing Editor at Crosscut, following tech, culture, media and politics. She founded Crosscut's Community Idea Lab. Previously community manager of the Tribune Company’