What's Going On With Amazon Today? AWS, Microsoft Both Vying For Public-Sector Cloud Market Share

Amazon.Com, Inc AMZN has been firing from all cylinders to unlock shareholder value.

The e-commerce giant's 'Buy with Prime' started the holiday season by offering new shopping benefits. The program enabled Prime members to shop directly from various brands' online stores, offering fast, free delivery, a seamless checkout experience, and free returns on eligible orders. Amazon Prime members saved over $1 billion across millions of deals during Prime Big Deal Days on Oct. 10 and 11.

Amazon is reportedly funding and influencing advocacy groups to hinder Microsoft Corp's MSFT growth as a significant cloud computing contractor for governments. These groups aim to convince policymakers that Microsoft is improperly locking customers into its Azure cloud service, stifling competition and technological advancement, Bloomberg reports.

The advocacy groups have been lobbying policymakers to ensure customers can use popular Microsoft products on any cloud system, particularly AWS. This comes as global regulators investigate Microsoft's behavior in the cloud market, with Amazon exerting influence directly and through these groups.

Amazon and Microsoft are vying for a share of the lucrative public-sector cloud computing market, which is estimated to grow significantly in the coming years.

Also, Amazon has successfully conducted tests on two prototype communications satellites launched into space last month as part of its Project Kuiper initiative. These tests included evaluating components such as flight computers, solar-power arrays, propulsion, and radio transmission. The prototypes demonstrated capabilities like 4K video streaming and two-way video calls over the Kuiper network.

Amazon plans to continue testing the satellites while producing models designed for extended service. The company aims for a "rapid launch cadence" starting next year as it prepares for the first trials of commercial service. Amazon has received authorization from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to deploy 3,326 satellites in low-earth orbit to provide global broadband internet service, competing with SpaceX's Starlink.

Price Action: AMZN shares traded lower by 0.21% at $142.91 on the last check Thursday.