Задание 2. Read the text and write what events these dates indicate. 1995 1998 2000 2002

AMAZON – THE BIGGEST SUCCESS STORY IN E-COMMERCE

1 When the Amazon.com website went live on July 16th 1995, nobody could have predicted that the small, Seattle-based online bookseller would become the most successful Internet retailer in the world.

2 Founder Jeff Bezos had realized that an online bookshop could offer far more titles than the biggest brick-and-mortar shop, and launched Amazon, named after the river, with just a few employees and a tiny warehouse. The business took off immediately, and Bezos and his workers soon found themselves struggling to ship a growing volume of orders.

3 Bezos only ever intended to sell books, but when customers started emailing asking him to sell music and electronics in the same way, he decided to diversify.

4 Amazon began selling music and DVDs in 1998, and added electronics, toys, software and video games a year later. Today the online store sells a vast range of products, including food, beauty products and musical instruments. As well as the original US site, it has websites for Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, China and Japan.

5 When it was launched, Amazon’s business plan was highly unusual in that it did not expect to make a profit for five years. Throughout the late 1990s, when other Internet companies were growing at a blisteringly fast pace, Amazon grew at a very steady pace.

6 When the dot.com bubble burst in 2000 and many of its e-commerce contemporaries went out of business, Amazon was still unprofitable. Bezos persevered and the company made its first profit in 2002. Since then profits have grown steadily.

7 Why has Amazon survived when so many dotcoms have failed over the years? Customer loyalty plays a large part. Right from the start Amazon’s customers have tended to return over and over again. The personalized website, offering suggestions based on previous purchases, and features such as customer reviews, make the shopping experience easier and more personal than most online retailing.

8 International sales are another factor. Unlike many US and UK online retailers, Amazon will ship many of their products anywhere in the world. A reputation for reliability, and a clear policy on returning goods, has also helped Amazon achieve world dominance in the virtual marketplace.

9 Bezos vows to keep expanding, both by launching more country specific websites and by adding more product lines and services. Amazon looks set to remain the market leader for some time yet.