Tt June 16 2017 post b

bq. _"Don't forget that Amazon is not in the business of retail storefronts."_

Since at least 2014,
Amazon has "experimented":http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-big-expansion-retail-pop-up-stores-2016-9 with and "opened":https://venturebeat.com/2017/04/29/heres-what-amazons-new-stores-will-look-like/ small, physical retail stores and kiosks. 


And also in today's "tech news,":https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14570574 Amazon was recently granted a patent that gives the appearance that Amazon is highly interested in physical stores.



June 16, 2017 - WaPo - "Amazon has a patent to keep you from comparison shopping while you’re in its stores":https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/innovations/wp/2017/06/16/amazon-has-a-patent-to-keep-you-from-comparison-shopping-while-youre-in-its-stores/

This would apply when using the Amazon store's free WiFi. Since it's their WiFi, they can do what they want.

q.
Amazon was awarded a patent May 30 that could help it choke off a common issue faced by many physical stores: Customers’ use of smartphones to compare prices even as they walk around a shop. The phenomenon, often known as mobile “window shopping,” has contributed to a worrisome decline for traditional retailers.

But Amazon now has the technology to prevent that type of behavior *when customers enter any of its physical stores* and log onto the WiFi networks there.

 Titled *“Physical Store Online Shopping Control,”* Amazon’s patent describes a system that can identify a customer’s Internet traffic and sense when the smartphone user is trying to access a competitor’s website.

Just because a company wins a patent doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll use it. 
q..