Is Amazon Trying to Turn Us All Into Drones?

Amazon isn't the first major retailer to offer subscriptions on popular products, and it’s tempting to look at these automation efforts as a temporary market-clearing strategy that will capture subscription shoppers without affecting its core business model. It’s ultimately an unconvincing view, however. Subscription services haven't taken off to a point where they seriously threaten Amazon’s business. Moreover, if Amazon creates a successful user experience around its subscription offerings, it might lure away some of its own on-screen shoppers — i.e., people who log in to buy one thing at a time from the site but end up with a cartful of impulse purchases. These customers will now press a button and avoid temptation. They'll no longer be persuaded down the winding path of discovery that drives the e-commerce experience. It’s not plausible that Amazon would devise a strategy that could so obviously backfire absent a very clear threat from competitors in the subscription space.