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Wal-Mart drops Amazon products from its stores

Wal-Mart's decision echoes a similar one made by Target last May. Some analysts say both companies are viewing Amazon as more of a competitor.

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David Duprey/AP
Wal-Mart will no longer sell Amazon products beyond those they'd already purchased or ordered, according to the company.
  • By Molly Driscoll Staff Writer

Wal-Mart has announced it will stop selling Amazon devices such as the Kindle e-readers and the tablet device the Kindle Fire.

The move comes after fellow retailing giant Target also stopped stocking Amazon devices in May.

As Amazon increasingly attempts to position itself as a go-to retailer for everything their customers need, experts say Wal-Mart may have wanted to stop supporting the competition.

"Every time you pick up your Kindle, they’re trying to get you to buy patio furniture [at Amazon],” technology analyst for BGC Financial Colin Gillis told The New York Times. “If I were Wal-Mart, I certainly would not be encouraging my customers to go down the path of owning a Kindle and buying things from Amazon."

Amazon recently began building warehouses in several states to get closer to their goal of same-day shipping for its customers. Besides books and DVDs, the Amazon website also currently offers items under categories like "home, garden and tools," "grocery, health and beauty" and "sports and outdoors." Devices like the Kindle Fire encourage users to purchase e-books, movies and TV shows.

A Wal-Mart spokeswoman told Reuters that the stores will continue to sell "a broad assortment" of other tablet devices, so readers will still be able to purchase devices at the stores.

Caris & Company analyst Scott Tilghman told Reuters that the reason for the change was simple.

"Wal-Mart and Target view Amazon as a competitor," he said.

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