Bezos to Step Down as CEO as Amazon Posts $126 Billion in Revenues

As part of its quarterly earnings report today, Amazon announced that founder Jeff Bezos is stepping down as CEO of the online retailer later this year. Andy Jassy will replace him as CEO as Bezos moves into the chairman role.

Suffice to say, Amazon had a record-breaking holiday quarter, with the firm delivering more than one billion “toys, home, fashion, electronics, beauty, and personal care products to customers worldwide.”

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For the quarter ending December 31, 2020, Amazon reported a net income of $7.2 billion on revenues of $125.6 billion; that latter figure is an incredible 44 percent gain over the same quarter one year ago. For the full year 2020, Amazon reported a net income of $21.3 billion on revenues of $386.1 billion, an also-incredible 38 percent gain YOY.

“Amazon is what it is because of invention,” Mr. Bezos said of the quarter. “We do crazy things together and then make them normal. We pioneered customer reviews, 1-Click, personalized recommendations, Prime’s insanely-fast shipping, Just Walk Out shopping, the Climate Pledge, Kindle, Alexa, marketplace, infrastructure cloud computing, Career Choice, and much more. “When you look at our financial results, what you’re actually seeing are the long-run cumulative results of invention. Right now[,] I see Amazon at its most inventive ever, making it an optimal time for this transition.”

Separately, Amazon today revealed some additional plans for its second headquarters, which is based in Arlington, Virginia, right outside of Washington D.C. The firm is starting its second phase of construction there and will build 2.8 million square feet of office space as part of a commitment to create 25,000 jobs and invest $2.5 billion in the community over the next decade. “The project will create more than 2.5 acres of open space for the local community, run on renewable energy, and bring retail and other services to local residents,” Amazon noted.

Among Amazon’s milestones in the quarter, the firm says that it now has over 50 million Fire TV monthly active users.

And the good times won’t end: Amazon expects revenues to land between $100 billion and $106 billion in the current quarter.

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Conversation 15 comments

  • crunchyfrog

    02 February, 2021 - 4:36 pm

    <p>Bezos doesn't seem like the 'step down' kinda guy. Maybe step aside just not down.</p>

  • jchampeau

    Premium Member
    02 February, 2021 - 7:19 pm

    <p>I'm reminded of how they "pioneered" 1-Click every time I want to buy a Kindle book with my company credit card and I have to click about 10 times just so I can then use the 1-Click function and get it charged the right card.</p>

    • matsan

      03 February, 2021 - 4:39 am

      <blockquote><em><a href="#611521">In reply to jchampeau:</a></em></blockquote><p>I just had to clear a similar situation with PayPal where they started charging my company card because my personal card (marked as default) had expired. Instead of notifying me, they switched to the other valid card in my account… If auto-billing services such as Spotify and Netflix would have been denied, I would have noticed. Now it took two months before my accountant started asking questions.</p>

    • IanYates82

      Premium Member
      03 February, 2021 - 7:27 am

      <blockquote><em><a href="#611521">In reply to jchampeau:</a></em></blockquote><p>It was one of the software patents held up as everything that was wrong with software patents </p>

    • Paul Thurrott

      Premium Member
      03 February, 2021 - 11:46 am

      Wow. I feel like you’re doing something wrong because buying anything on Amazon couldn’t be quicker or easier.

      • davehelps

        Premium Member
        03 February, 2021 - 12:36 pm

        <blockquote><em><a href="#611576">In reply to paul-thurrott:</a></em></blockquote><p><br></p><p>I can relate to what jchampeau says. Buying on Amazon is like doing something on iOS. If what you're trying to do is aligned with what most people want to do, it's quick and easy.</p><p>So if you have 1 credit card, and 1 address, and you always want stuff shipped and billed the same way, yes, it's so easy.</p><p><br></p><p>I mostly shop on Amazon UK, as that's where my Kindle library is. But I live in Switzerland. </p><p>There is no Amazon Switzerland. Amazon would prefer me to move my account to Amazon Germany. And I tried that – but then all the movies and TV shows were in German by default, often with no option to switch to English.</p><p><br></p><p>Worse, all my ebook purchases had to be from Amazon.de, which would often take several months to offer the same books available on amazon.co.uk</p><p><br></p><p>So I now have my account back on Amazon.co.uk. For most purchases I want to use my current Swiss credit cards and bill to my Swiss address. But to buy any movie on Prime Video, I have to use a UK credit card and bill to a UK address. For pretty much every purchase I make, I have to adjust the default billing and payment settings.</p><p><br></p><p>The process to change your "1-click" settings is laborious.</p><p><br></p><p>And then for added fun, at checkout, Amazon tries to do the currency conversion for me, which I have to disable manually for EVERY SINGLE PURCHASE, because I get a better rate from my card providers than what Amazon would offer.</p><p><br></p><p><br></p>

      • wright_is

        Premium Member
        04 February, 2021 - 8:59 am

        <blockquote><em><a href="#611576">In reply to paul-thurrott:</a></em></blockquote><p>It depends. If you only have one card, yes. If you have to separate business and private, not so straight forward.</p><p>I have a UK card and a German card. I use them for different purchases. Also, depending on the delivery schedule, I have to check/change the delivery address on each order. It isn't that big a deal and it is down to my personal circumstances and isn't really Amazon's fault, but ordering can become complicated. </p><p>Also, if it is a company card, you might not be allowed to store it against your account, for example, so have to enter it temporarily for those transactions, then delete it again afterwards.</p><p>Luckily, our company account gets invoiced and Amazon pulls the money out of the right bank account (we do the central ordering for 5 subsidiaries, so we have to ensure the correct bank account (no company credit cards) is debited and that the correct delivery and invoice addresses are on each order).</p>

  • JH_Radio

    Premium Member
    02 February, 2021 - 7:24 pm

    <p>Buy it now is two clicks for me. buy it now and place order. And the A lady shopping by voice which I tried for the first time the other day, that's way too easy to do, lmao. they really really want my money. </p>

  • rickeveleigh

    Premium Member
    04 February, 2021 - 3:03 am

    <p>'<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">When you look at our financial results, what you’re actually seeing are the long-run cumulative results of invention.' I beg to differ, Jeff, when I look at your results I see a company that benefitted from COVID. Which is no bad thing (we need our stuff delivered when we can't go out) but have some grace and credit that.</span></p>

  • Pbike908

    04 February, 2021 - 10:14 am

    <p>His bestest final move is building a second headquarters right outside DC. </p><p><br></p><p>Amazon and Bezos are about to step their lobbying efforts BIGLY…</p><p><br></p><p>My guess is Bezos has an eye on the "Big Prize." POTUS. </p>

    • bbennett40

      04 February, 2021 - 10:57 am

      <blockquote><a href="#611733"><em>In reply to Pbike908:</em></a><em> </em>They've already taken direct political actions.</blockquote><p><br></p>

    • illuminated

      04 February, 2021 - 1:30 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#611733">In reply to Pbike908:</a></em></blockquote><p>The last businessman president proved to be pretty bad choice. I prefer presidents with at least some government experience.</p>

      • bbennett40

        04 February, 2021 - 4:11 pm

        <blockquote><a href="#611747"><em>In reply to illuminated:</em></a><em> </em>And <em>THAT </em>is how we get people in office for nearly 50 years with questionable results, leeching off the citizens. Government experience is in NO way necessary to hold public office. I, personally, would rather have someone with some decent sense than government experience.</blockquote><p><br></p>

        • Greg Green

          06 February, 2021 - 10:58 am

          <blockquote><em><a href="#611763">In reply to bbennett40:</a></em></blockquote><p>Also someone who isn’t looking to lobbying firms as a retirement plan. The last honest politician in my opinion was Dick Gephardt, who left the House with a net worth of less than $150,000. I looked him up recently and sure enough, he’s a lobbyist too. They get almost everyone.</p>

  • Greg Green

    06 February, 2021 - 11:02 am

    <p>That’s way too much money. As convenient as they are I’ve started buying movies, books and other items through Best Buy and Barnes and Noble, even Walmart when I can. The local community needs some of my money more.</p><p><br></p><p>of course the first book I bought from BN required $6 in shipping. They’re not making it easy.</p>

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