Amazon will start selling its unmanned convenience store system to other retailers

According to foreign media reports, Amazon will begin selling its unmanned convenience store Go system to other retailers. It is reported that Amazon already has "several" retailers contracted to use the system.

In marketing, Amazon refers to the Go system as Just Walk Out technology. Amazon's services website also invited other retailers to come to inquire about related matters.

When customers visit Amazon's unmanned convenience store Go, it uses ceiling-mounted cameras and shelf weight sensors to automatically track customers and products. Once shopping is completed, customers can walk out of the store without having to scan anything or interact with the cashier. Their account will be paid automatically and an invoice will be sent to them via email. Amazon launched Go, the first unmanned convenience store in December 2016, and now operates about 26 stores across the United States, including the first traditional grocery store opened last month.

According to reports, Amazon's version of the Go system sold to other retailers will work slightly differently than the system it uses. At the store entrance, customers don't need to scan the application, they just need to insert a credit card into the turnstile. These turnstiles will be Amazon-branded, but anywhere else they will allow partner retailers to label their own. According to reports, Amazon will also install ceiling-mounted cameras and shelf weight sensors in each store. Amazon says it will take weeks to deploy the technology in a store.

Rumors have it that Amazon has licensed Go system technology to other retailers. It was reported last year that Amazon plans to sell the technology in 2020. Moreover, airport stores may be the first to receive this new technology.

Dilip Kumar, Amazon's vice president of physical retail and technology, declined to comment on the company's business model for the technology and would not disclose how much it charges. However, according to the media, this service may have positive benefits for other areas of Amazon's business, including increased use of Amazon's AWS cloud services.

There is of course the question of customer data collection and who owns it. If customers want to receive invoice information via email, they must type their email information into the store's kiosk, and Amazon will associate their email information with their credit card information. Amazon has confirmed that if they visit other stores that support Just Walk Out technology, credit card information will also be associated with their email information. However, Kumar said that Amazon will only use Just Walk Out technical data to support its retailers.

Amazon may face challenges in rolling out new technologies to more retailers. There are reports that some retailers have refused to cooperate with Amazon in the past because they consider Amazon to be a competitor and disruptor. In addition, there are concerns about the system's special space requirements, as only high ceilings will allow its cameras to function.