Amazon launches Prime in India, offers 60-day free trial period to woo customers

Tuesday July 26, 2016 , 2 min Read

Amazon India on Tuesday announced the launch of its globally popular Amazon Prime membership programme in India. The service is launched for Indian customers in over 100 cities who can enjoy unlimited free one-day and two-day delivery. Amazon.in is offering a free trial period of 60 days to allow Indian shoppers to experience the benefits of Prime.

Some of the features of the Amazon Prime service include:

Unlimited free one-day and two-day delivery (in 100 cities right now).
Prime Early Access: Members can purchase top Lightning Deals 30 minutes early, every single day.
Exclusive deals from brands and sellers, selected especially for Prime members.

Customers searching for products can use the new “Prime” filter to look for all eligible Products. A “Prime” badge will be displayed on listings to indicate when a product will be delivered to the customer’s address.

Also read: The game is on – e-sellers versus Flipkart-Amazon-Snapdeal

Amazon.in is offering Prime at an introductory annual subscription fee of Rs 499, a discount of Rs 500 over the list price of Rs 999. As a special promotion, customers who sign up early can enjoy Prime free for 60 days, which is twice the normal trial period globally. Non-members will continue to have the option of expedited delivery on their orders with the usual delivery charges where applicable. Prime members in 20 cities can also choose same-day, morning, or scheduled delivery at a discounted fee of Rs 50 per order on over 10,000 products. For deliveries to cities not yet eligible for one-day or two-day delivery, members will receive free delivery with no minimum purchase.

Greg Greeley, Vice-President Worldwide Prime, Amazon, said,

We have also introduced unique digital benefits like Prime Video featuring Amazon Original Series and Movies — you’ll be hearing more about that in the coming months.

Prime products will be delivered through the Fulfilment By Amazon (FBA) channel. Sellers need to simply send their products to an Amazon fulfilment centre, and Amazon stores inventory, pick, pack, and ship orders across India and also provide customer service on their behalf. FBA products are eligible for premium deliveries such as One-Day Delivery and Morning Delivery, generating more orders for sellers.

Flipkart First is a similar service by Flipkart which can be subscribed to for Rs 500 a year.