Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on Thursday accused the publisher of the National Enquirer of “blackmail” after it threatened to publish intimate photographs sent by the billionaire to his mistress if he did not cease an investigation into the newspaper’s alleged links with Saudi Arabia.

It comes after the tabloid last month reported Bezos was in a relationship with former news anchor and entertainment reporter Lauren Sanchez — having accessed private text messages.

Amazon.com and Walmart’s plans to dominate India’s online retail landscape have been ambushed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s political priorities heading into a tightening election. The vote, likely to be held in or around May, has increased the influence of local retailers that lobbied for growth-crimping curbs on the US giants. On cue, India this month rolled out constraints on foreign e-commerce players, including Jeff Bezos-led Amazon and Walmart-owned Flipkart, which together control 70% of its online shopping.

Amazon is working with brands across sectors to enable them to build skills on its Alexa platform. From daily news updates to smart-home integrations, banking services, food ordering and cab hailing, Alexa has been equipped with more than 10,000 skills, as the service expands in India.

US-based corporations Amazon and Walmart, which owns 77% stake in India’s largest online retailer Flipkart, together lost over $50 billion in market capitalisation on Friday after the government’s updated e-commerce policy came into effect. Both companies have made big bets on the Indian retail market - with Amazon committing $5 billion here while Walmart spent $16 billion last year to buy a controlling stake in Flipkart.

Amazon.com Inc on Thursday forecast first-quarter sales below Wall Street estimates as new regulations in India created uncertainty around one of its key growth markets, even as the online retailer reported record holiday sales and profit.

Shares of the company fell more than 5 per cent to $1,623.90 after the bell, sliding as company officials discussed expenses on a conference call with analysts.

Amazon and Walmart-owned Flipkart have told mobile phones, electronics and other companies, which sell their wares exclusively on these platforms, that they will be able to operate like they do now — albeit with some tweaks and rephrasing of agreements — once the revised ecommerce FDI norms come into effect.

Walmart Inc. has quietly withdrawn from one of Google’s marquee efforts to challenge Amazon.com Inc. in e-commerce.

Walmart removed its products from Google’s Shopping Actions service, the internet giant said on Thursday. The retailer also recently dropped out of Google Express, a related delivery service.

The battle for the Indian consumer was never going to be an all-American affair.

Walmart Inc.’s splashy acquisition last year of Flipkart Online Services Pvt., the homegrown e-tailer giving Amazon.com Inc. a solid run for its money, might have given the impression of a two-horse race. But as I argued (here and here), billionaire Mukesh Ambani wasn’t going to watch from the sidelines.

The government is unlikely to extend the February 1 deadline for e-tailers like Amazon and Flipkart to comply with latest changes to the foreign direct investment (FDI) guidelines announced in late December.

Amazon has asked the government to extend the deadline by four months and Flipkart, too, reportedly wants more time to adapt to the new rules.

A group of activist shareholders are proposing that Amazon.com Inc. stop selling facial recognition software to government agencies until its board determines the technology doesn’t threaten people’s civil rights.

The investors, including the Sisters of St. Joseph of Brentwood, a member of the Tri-State Coalition for Responsible Investment, filed a resolution on the subject to be voted on at Amazon’s annual meeting later this year.

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