This AmazonSmile Participation Agreement ('Participation Agreement') contains the terms and conditions that govern your participation in the AmazonSmile Foundation program described in this Participation Agreement (the 'Program'). 'We,' 'us,' or 'our' refers to the AmazonSmile Foundation, and 'you' or 'your' refers to the charitable organization participating or seeking to participate in the Program. 'AmazonSmile' means smile.amazon.com website (but not any other website available at amazon.com, such as www.amazon.com) accessed through a web browser and the AmazonSmile activated Amazon Shopping App on iOS and Android phones.
- Https Amazon Com Smile Amazon
- Amazon Smile Logo Image
- Amazon Smile Prime Photos
- Amazon Smile My Account
- Amazon Smile Graphics
- Amazon Smile Prime Photos
By creating a charity administration account on the org.amazon.com website ('Organization Site') or otherwise participating in or seeking to participate in the Program, you agree to these conditions. Please read them carefully.
1. Description of the Program
The Investor Relations website contains information about Amazon.com, Inc. Press Room's business for stockholders, potential investors, and financial analysts. Amazon wanted to use the smile symbol to the maximum. Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, was unwilling to spend an extra budget on designing packaging and other branding elements. Then Duckworth suggested putting a smile on boxes, bags, and other carriers.
The purpose of the Program is to permit Registered Organizations (as defined in Section 2) to receive donations from the AmazonSmile Foundation when customers make Qualifying Purchases (defined in Section 5) through AmazonSmile.
2. Registration
AmazonSmile customers can select any Eligible Organization, but only Registered Organizations can receive disbursements from the Program. To register, you must accept this Participation Agreement without modification, complete registration through the Organization Site and properly provide all requested information, including submitting a complete and accurate Program application that correctly identifies your charitable organization and providing valid bank account information as described in Section 6. We reserve the right to reject or suspend your registration if the requested information (including representative and bank account information) is inaccurate or incomplete or if you are otherwise not in compliance with this Participation Agreement. If your registration is accepted, your charitable organization will be a 'Registered Organization' for as long as all of your registration information, including the bank account information described in Section 6, is current and complete, this Participation Agreement remains in force, and you continue to be an Eligible Organization. You will ensure that all information you provide to us, including your Program application information, bank account information, email address, and other contact information, is at all times complete, accurate, and up-to-date, and agree that failure to keep such information up to date may result in you no longer being a Registered Organization or in you no longer receiving any donations under the Program.
Https Amazon Com Smile Amazon
'Eligible Organizations' are those charitable organizations that we determine:
- are qualified under Section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service Code;
- are public charitable organizations and not private foundations;
- are not supporting organizations, unless identified specifically as Type I, Type II, or functionally integrated Type III supporting organizations (as defined in the U.S. IRS Code);
- are headquartered in the United States (the 50 States, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands);
- are in good standing in their state of incorporation and in the states and territories where they are authorized to do business;
- do not engage in, support, encourage, or promote:
- intolerance, discrimination or discriminatory practices based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, or age;
- hate, terrorism, or violence;
- money laundering;
- other illegal, deceptive, or misleading activities; and
- are otherwise not in violation of the terms of this Participation Agreement.
You consent to us sending you notifications (if any), approvals (if any), and other communications relating to the Program and this Participation Agreement to the email address then-currently associated with your Program account. You will be deemed to have received all notifications, approvals, and other communications sent to that email address, even if the email address associated with your account is no longer current.
3. Program Policies
By participating in the Program, you agree that you will comply with the Program Policies and all pages, schedules, policies, guidelines, and other documents and materials referenced in this Participation Agreement, including policies and guidelines posted on the Organization Site and including the Program Content Guidelines and the AmazonSmile Program Description page (collectively, 'Operational Documentation').
You can only promote or link to AmazonSmile on your own website, user-generated content published through a social media account or page, offline mailings, or email correspondence (your 'Site') and can only use such of our trademarks or logos or our affiliates' trademarks or logos ('Amazon Marks'), links to AmazonSmile('Links'), or other content we may make available to you (collectively, 'Content'), in all cases in accordance with Program Policies and the Program Content Guidelines.
4. Responsibility for Your Site and Actions
You will be solely responsible for your Site, your organization, and actions taken by you or on your behalf, including:
- the development, operation, distribution, and maintenance of your Site;
- compliance with all applicable laws, ordinances, rules, regulations, orders, licenses, permits, judgments, decisions, and other requirements of any governmental authority that has jurisdiction over you or your Site;
- the bank account and other information we receive in connection with the Program;
- ensuring that any donation amounts that we make to you are used in accordance with applicable law and your stated mission;
- creating and posting, and ensuring the accuracy, completeness, and appropriateness of, materials posted on your Site (including any information you include within or you associate with Links);
- using the Content and any materials posted on your Site in a manner that does not infringe, violate, or misappropriate any of our rights or those of any other person or entity (including copyrights, trademarks, privacy, publicity, or other intellectual property or proprietary rights);
- any misrepresentation of your relationship with a charitable organization, registration of a charitable organization that you are not authorized to act on behalf of, or any other failure to provide true and accurate information in your registration, including if such failure results in you not receiving the amount of donations you would have otherwise received from the Program;
- ensuring you are duly authorized to enter into and perform your obligations under this Participation Agreement (including granting the rights set forth in the Program Content Guidelines) and that you do not violate any term or condition of this Participation Agreement; and
- your or your employees', contractors', agents', or volunteers' acts, errors, omissions, negligence, or misconduct.
We will have no liability for these matters, and you agree to defend, indemnify, and hold us, Amazon.com, Inc. ('Amazon') and its affiliates and licensors, and our and their respective employees, officers, directors, and representatives, harmless from and against all claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including attorneys' fees) relating to these matters. With respect to any emails, social media posts, mailings and other communications you send (or cause to be sent) in connection with the Program, you acknowledge that you are the originator and sender for all purposes (including under the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 and all similar laws).
5. Qualifying Purchases
We will make donations to you resulting from Qualifying Purchases in accordance with Section 6 and as set forth in the AmazonSmile Program Description page. Subject to the exclusions set forth below, a 'Qualifying Purchase' occurs when (a) a customer (i) places an order for a Product from his or her shopping cart on AmazonSmile, (ii) purchases a Product via our 1-Click feature on AmazonSmile, or (iii) streams or downloads a Product from AmazonSmile if the Product is a digital product; (b) at such time, that customer has selected your Eligible Organization to benefit from purchases the customer makes on AmazonSmile; and (c) the Product is shipped to or streamed or downloaded by, and paid for by, the customer.
A 'Product' is any item sold on AmazonSmile and which is marked 'Eligible for AmazonSmile donation' (or substantially similar messaging) on the relevant item detail page.
Qualifying Purchases exclude, and you will not be eligible for disbursements in connection with any of, the following:
- recurring Subscribe-and-Save purchases and subscription renewals;
- any Product purchased after termination of this Participation Agreement or purchased in connection with a violation of this Participation Agreement; or
- any Product order that is canceled or returned.
6. Donations
Donations from us to Registered Organizations are based on Qualifying Purchases shipped, streamed, or downloaded (as applicable) in a given calendar quarter, and not subsequently returned. Donations are calculated in accordance with the Operational Documentation, as it may be modified from time to time. Donations for each calendar quarter will be made approximately 45 days following the end of that quarter. To account for Product returns that are made after the end of a calendar quarter, we reserve the right in our sole discretion to withhold a portion of your quarterly donations for disbursement during the next donation cycle, subject to any reduction due to returns or cancellations from prior quarters. If we determine that we have made an overpayment in donations to you as a result of returns not offset by donations held back to account for returns, or if we determine that you received donations to which you were not entitled as a result of your actions or omissions (for example, if you provided incomplete or false registration information or otherwise violated this Participation Agreement), we reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to (a) deduct the amount of the overpayment from any donation amount that is due to you in subsequent donation cycles, and/or (b) notify you and request reimbursement for any amounts incorrectly paid to you, in which case you hereby agree to reimburse us for such overpayments promptly and in any event within 30 days of such request. You acknowledge and agree that we are under no obligation to provide you with a report of Qualifying Purchases or donations attributed or earned.
If we determine that you are no longer an Eligible Organization or that you or anyone acting on your behalf has violated any term or condition set forth in this Participation Agreement (including failure to qualify as a Registered Organization), we reserve the right to disburse any donation that would have been made to you instead to one or more other Registered Organizations as set forth in the Operational Documentation.
When making donations to Registered Organizations, we will directly deposit donations to you into a U.S. bank account you designate. We reserve the right to accrue and withhold donations for any Registered Organization until the total donation for that organization is at least $5.00, at which point the accrued and withheld total donations will be paid in full during the next quarterly donation cycle. However, we will not withhold donations that remain under the $5.00 level for a Registered Organization for longer than four consecutive quarters.
You must promptly provide us with accurate and complete bank account information, including the bank account type, the 9-digit routing number/ABA number, the account number, and the name of the primary account holder as it appears on the account, in addition to a voided check or bank statement (as set forth in the Program application). If you do not provide this information, the information is not valid (for example, the account has been closed or changed), or a donation is otherwise rejected by your bank, then we reserve the right to suspend or revoke your registration for the program, so that you will cease to be a Registered Organization, you will not receive donations, and donations that you would have received will be treated as donations directed to an Eligible Organization that is not a Registered Organization, as described in the following paragraph. You will only be eligible to receive donations again after you provide valid account information and you qualify as a Registered Organization.
If an Eligible Organization that is not a Registered Organization accrues donations in a given calendar quarter, we will accrue and withhold such donations until the donation cycle following the end of the calendar quarter in which it becomes a Registered Organization. However, if such an Eligible Organization does not promptly become a Registered Organization, then we reserve the right after each calendar quarter in which an Eligible Organization accrues withheld amounts (after expiration of a reasonable period as we determine in our discretion, not to exceed 3 years after such quarter), to reallocate and disburse such accrued and withheld funds to organizations qualified as Registered Organizations.
We may be obligated by law to obtain tax information from you. If we request tax information from you and you do not provide it to us, we may (in addition to any other rights or remedies available to us) withhold your donations until you provide this information or otherwise satisfy us that you are not a person from whom we are required to obtain tax information.
7. Public Communications; Identifying Yourself as a Program Participant
You acknowledge and agree that we may or may cause others to publicly disclose (including through a government filing, press release, interview, or any other public statement) the amount of donations provided to you (individually and/or collectively with other charitable organizations) in connection with the Program, provided that such communications shall not tie donation amounts to any individual customer. Except as expressly permitted in the Operational Documentation, you will not issue any press release or make any other public communication with respect to this Participation Agreement, your use of the Content, or your participation in the Program.
8. Term and Termination
The term of this Participation Agreement will begin upon acceptance of this Participation Agreement and will end when terminated by either you or us. Either you or we may terminate this Participation Agreement at any time, with or without cause, by giving the other party written notice of termination, which for your termination notice will require a written request to be removed from the program, delivered by this contact us form on the Organizational Site, and for our termination notice will require either making a notice available for your review on the Organizational Site or transmitting email to the email address then-currently associated with your Program account. We also reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to cancel or otherwise terminate the Program at any time. Upon any termination of this Participation Agreement and/or the Program, all rights and obligations of the parties will be extinguished, except that the rights and obligations of the parties under Sections 2, 4, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14 and under the Program Content Guidelines will survive the termination of this Participation Agreement. No rights or obligations with respect to accrued but unpaid donation obligations will survive any termination of this Participation Agreement, and instead amounts otherwise allocable to you will be allocated and paid to other Registered Organizations in accordance with Section 6. No termination of this Participation Agreement will otherwise relieve either party for any liability for any breach of, or liability accruing under, this Participation Agreement prior to termination.
9. Modification
We reserve the right to modify any of the terms and conditions contained in this Participation Agreement (and any Operational Documentation) at any time and in our sole discretion by posting a change notice, revised agreement, or revised Operational Documentation on Organization Site or by sending notice of such modification to you by email to the email address then-currently associated with your Program account (any such change will be effective on the date specified in such notice but will in no event be less than two business days after the date of the notice). YOUR CONTINUED PARTICIPATION IN THE PROGRAM FOLLOWING THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF SUCH NOTICE WILL CONSTITUTE YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THE MODIFICATIONS. IF ANY MODIFICATION IS UNACCEPTABLE TO YOU, YOUR ONLY RECOURSE IS TO TERMINATE THIS PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 8. YOUR CONTINUED PARTICIPATION IN THE PROGRAM FOLLOWING THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF ANY MODIFICATION (FOR EXAMPLE, THE DATE OF OUR POSTING OF A CHANGE NOTICE, REVISED PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT, OR REVISED OPERATIONAL DOCUMENTATION ON THE Organization Site OR THE EFFECTIVE DATE SPECIFIED IN ANY EMAIL TO YOU REGARDING SUCH MODIFICATION) WILL CONSTITUTE YOUR BINDING ACCEPTANCE OF THE CHANGE.
10. Relationship of Parties
You and we are independent contractors, and nothing in this Participation Agreement or the Operational Documentation will create any partnership, joint venture, agency, franchise, sales representative, or employment relationship between you and us or our respective affiliates. You will have no authority to make or accept any offers or representations on our or our affiliates' behalf. You will not make any statement, whether on your Site or otherwise, that contradicts or may contradict anything in this Section 10. If you authorize, assist, encourage, or facilitate another person or entity to take any action related to the subject matter of this Participation Agreement, you will be deemed to have taken the action yourself.
11. Limitation of Liability
NONE OF US, AMAZON, OR THEIR AFFILIATES AND LICENSORS WILL BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES (INCLUDING ANY LOSS OF REVENUE, PROFITS, GOODWILL, USE, OR DATA) ARISING IN CONNECTION WITH THIS PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT, OR THE SERVICE OFFERINGS (DEFINED BELOW), EVEN IF WE HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF THOSE DAMAGES. FURTHER, THE AGGREGATE LIABILITY FOR US, AMAZON, AND THEIR AFFILIATES AND LICENSORS ARISING IN CONNECTION WITH THIS PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT, THE PROGRAM, THE AMAZONSMILE, AND THE SERVICE OFFERINGS WILL NOT EXCEED $100.
12. Disclaimers
THE PROGRAM, AMAZONSMILE, THE ORGANIZATION SITE, ANY PRODUCTS AND SERVICES OFFERED ON OR THROUGH AMAZONSMILE OR ORGANIZATION SITE, ANY CONTENT, THE SMILE.AMAZON.COM DOMAIN NAME, THE AMAZON SHOPPING APP, TRADEMARKS AND LOGOS OF OURS, AND ALL TECHNOLOGY, SOFTWARE, FUNCTIONS, MATERIALS, DATA, IMAGES, TEXT, AND OTHER INFORMATION AND CONTENT PROVIDED OR USED BY OR ON BEHALF OF US IN CONNECTION WITH THE PROGRAM (COLLECTIVELY THE 'SERVICE OFFERINGS') ARE PROVIDED 'AS IS' AND 'AS AVAILABLE.' WE DO NOT MAKE ANY REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED, STATUTORY, OR OTHERWISE WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OFFERINGS. EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT PROHIBITED BY APPLICABLE LAW, WE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OFFERINGS, INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, SATISFACTORY QUALITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, AND QUIET ENJOYMENT, AND ANY WARRANTIES ARISING OUT OF ANY COURSE OF DEALING, PERFORMANCE, OR TRADE USAGE. WE MAY DISCONTINUE ANY SERVICE OFFERING, OR MAY CHANGE THE NATURE, FEATURES, FUNCTIONS, SCOPE, OR OPERATION OF ANY SERVICE OFFERING, AT ANY TIME AND FROM TIME TO TIME. WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE OFFERINGS WILL CONTINUE TO BE PROVIDED, WILL FUNCTION AS DESCRIBED, CONSISTENTLY OR IN ANY PARTICULAR MANNER, OR WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ACCURATE, ERROR FREE, OR FREE OF HARMFUL COMPONENTS. WE WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR (A) ANY ERRORS, INACCURACIES, OR SERVICE INTERRUPTIONS, INCLUDING POWER OUTAGES OR SYSTEM FAILURES; OR (B) ANY UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO OR ALTERATION OF, OR DELETION, DESTRUCTION, DAMAGE, OR LOSS OF, YOUR SITE OR ANY DATA, IMAGES, TEXT, OR OTHER INFORMATION OR CONTENT. NO ADVICE OR INFORMATION OBTAINED BY YOU FROM US OR FROM ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY OR THROUGH THE SERVICE OFFERINGS WILL CREATE ANY WARRANTY NOT EXPRESSLY STATED IN THIS PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT. FURTHER, WE WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY COMPENSATION, REIMBURSEMENT, OR DAMAGES ARISING IN CONNECTION WITH (X) ANY LOSS OF PROSPECTIVE PROFITS OR REVENUE, ANTICIPATED SALES, GOODWILL, OR OTHER BENEFITS, (Y) ANY INVESTMENTS, EXPENDITURES, OR COMMITMENTS BY YOU IN CONNECTION WITH THIS PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT OR YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THE PROGRAM, OR (Z) ANY TERMINATION OR SUSPENSION OF THIS PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT OR YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THE PROGRAM.
13. Disputes
Any dispute relating in any way to the Program or this Participation Agreement will be resolved by binding arbitration, rather than in court, except that you may assert claims in small claims court if your claims qualify. The Federal Arbitration Act and federal arbitration law and the laws of the state of Washington, without regard to principles of conflict of laws, will govern this Participation Agreement and any dispute of any sort that might arise between you and us.
There is no judge or jury in arbitration, and court review of an arbitration award is limited. However, an arbitrator can award on an individual basis the same damages and relief as a court (including injunctive and declaratory relief or statutory damages), and must follow the terms of this Participation Agreement as a court would.
To begin an arbitration proceeding, you must send a letter requesting arbitration and describing your claim to our registered agent, Corporation Service Company, 300 Deschutes Way SW, Suite 304, Tumwater, WA 98051. The arbitration will be conducted by the American Arbitration Association ('AAA') under its rules, including the AAA's Supplementary Procedures for Consumer-Related Disputes. The AAA's rules are available at www.adr.org or by calling 1-800-778-7879. Payment of all filing, administration and arbitrator fees will be governed by the AAA's rules. We will reimburse those fees for claims totaling less than $10,000 unless the arbitrator determines the claims are frivolous. Likewise, we will not seek attorneys' fees and costs in arbitration unless the arbitrator determines the claims are frivolous. You may choose to have the arbitration conducted by telephone, based on written submissions, or in person in the county where you live or at another mutually agreed location.
We each agree that any dispute resolution proceedings will be conducted only on an individual basis and not in a class, consolidated, or representative action. If for any reason a claim proceeds in court rather than in arbitration, we each waive any right to a jury trial. We also both agree that you or we may bring suit in court to enjoin infringement or other misuse of intellectual property rights.
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Participation Agreement, we may seek injunctive or other relief in any state, federal, or national court of competent jurisdiction for any actual or alleged infringement of our or any other person or entity's intellectual property or proprietary rights. You further acknowledge and agree that our rights in the Content are of a special, unique, extraordinary character, giving them peculiar value, the loss of which cannot be readily estimated or adequately compensated for in monetary damages.
14. Miscellaneous
Amazon Smile Logo Image
By accepting this Participation Agreement you hereby consent to us sending your organization emails from time to time relating to the Program. You may not assign this Participation Agreement, by operation of law or otherwise, without our express prior written approval. Subject to that restriction, this Participation Agreement will be binding on, inure to the benefit of, and be enforceable against the parties and their respective successors and assigns. Our failure to enforce your strict performance of any provision of this Participation Agreement will not constitute a waiver of our right to subsequently enforce such provision or any other provision of this Participation Agreement. We may from time to time in our sole discretion make donations that exceed or supplement those strictly required under this Participation Agreement, but in no event will such actions create any right to receive excessive or supplemental donations at any later time or under similar circumstances. In the event of any conflict between this Participation Agreement and the Operational Documentation, the Participation Agreement will control over the Operational Documentation. Amazon, its affiliates and licensors are expressly intended third party beneficiaries of this Participation Agreement, but except as stated in this sentence this Participation Agreement no other person or entity other than you and us will have any right or interest arising out of this Participation Agreement. This Participation Agreement incorporates, and you agree to comply with, the most up-to-date version of all Operational Documentation, including any updates of the Operational Documentation from time to time. Whenever used in this Participation Agreement, the terms 'include(s),' 'including,' and 'for example' mean, respectively, 'include(s), without limitation,' 'including, without limitation,' and 'for example, without limitation.' Any determinations or updates that may be made by us, any actions that may be taken by us, and any approvals that may be given by us under this Participation Agreement, may be made, taken, or given in our sole discretion. All non-public information provided by us in connection with this Participation Agreement or the Program is considered confidential information, and you will maintain the same in strict confidence and not disclose the same to any third party (other than your affiliates) or use the same for any purpose other than your performance under this Participation Agreement, which restriction will be in addition to the terms of any confidentiality or non-disclosure agreement between the parties. This Participation Agreement (including the Operational Documentation) is the entire agreement between you and us regarding the Program and supersedes all prior agreements and discussions.
Thank you for visiting the Museum
This museum celebrates the heritage of technology we've all grown up with. Please help us maintain and grow the museum by making a small donation -- buy us a coffee? Thank you so much!
Check out our YouTube video showing the history of the Amazon.com website! It has all the images and captions from this page, and is easy on the eyes.
Early Stage Amazon (1994-1995)
In 1994, Jeff Bezos witnessed the exponential growth of the World Wide Web and saw an opportunity to realize online commerce. Initially named Cadabra, Bezos changed the name when his attorney convinced him that it sounded too much like Cadaver. Bezos also considered the name Relentless for a while before opting for Amazon, which reflected the ideas of grandiosity and abundance. The company was founded on July 5th, 1994.
Original Amazon Website (1995)
Amazon.com was launched in July 1995. The logo was an abstract letter 'A' with a winding river flowing through it and the words Amazon.com, Earth's biggest bookstore at the bottom. The color scheme of the site was typical for 1995 -- lots of gray and not terribly vibrant.
The company offered more than 1 million book titles, vastly outpacing any competition at the time. It featured a simple search engine to help find relevant books. Amazon also offered a free subscription to its personal notification service called 'Eyes and Editors,' enabling clients to proclaim their favorite authors and books. Whenever a new book of interest was added to the catalog, Amazon would automatically send the customer an email announcing the addition. Additionally, Amazon allowed clients to comment on books and exchange ideas with people around the world using review pages.
The original Amazon website (August 1995)
Source: Restored by Taran Van Hemert
TV Interview Footage (1997)
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos conducted many interviews in the early years, but this one in 1997 with KIRO 7 Seattle is notable because it had footage of the website at the time. The quality is poor, but still valuable to see Amazon in it's infancy. The computer in the closeup shots of the website appears to be an Apple Powerbook 1400, but the PC brand on Bezos' desk is unclear.
The first image below makes light of Amazon's massive collection of more than one million books. Amazon's Book of the Day link boasts 'a different title every day for the next 3,000 years.'
Amazon.com Homepage on TV broadcast (1997)
Source: KIRO 7 News
Amazon.com Search by Title, Author, or Subject (1997)
Source: KIRO 7 News
Jeff Bezos with Amazon.com (1997)
Source: KIRO 7 News
Logo Experimentation (1997)
The initial Amazon logo underwent several iterations, with changes in color scheme and fonts. With each iteration, the logo slowly came into shape, with the color palette becoming increasingly similar to the modern logo.
Amazon experiments with logo iterations (1997)
Source: fineprintart.com
Early Amazon Homepage (1997)
Utc time to cst. The company went public on May 15th, 1997 and raised $54 million in the process. Amazon's website underwent major changes, reflected in the design and more user-friendly interface. A left sidebar was introduced to enhance navigation, making the website more usable. Book covers and reviews were introduced to the experience to allow users to visualize the bookstore.
Amazon Smile Prime Photos
Amazon homepage image, restored by Version Museum (1997)
Source: ebaumsworld.com
Additional Logo Changes (1998)
In 1998, the Amazon logo went through additional iterations. A lowercase serif font served as the main logo for a short time, with the tag line 'Earth's Biggest Bookstore' underneath. But later that year, the company employed a sans serif all-caps logo with a bright yellow letter 'O' in the middle. This was also taken down in a few months; the logo soon morphed into the more familiar lowercase sans-serif logo with a slightly curved yellow line underneath. The motto 'Books, Music and More' floated above. With Amazon's ambitious expansion plans, the slogan was taken out after a couple of months.
Homepage with 'Earth's Biggest Bookstore' slogan (1998)
Source: blog.cake.hr
Introduction of Tabs & International Expansion (1998)
As Amazon's ambitions grew beyond selling books, tabs were introduced to the website. The site itself went through numerous alterations, with the search bar making its first prominent appearance to the top left of the homepage in the latter half of the year.
Furthermore, international expansion began, with acquisitions of online stores in the United Kingdom and Germany.
Product Expansion, Zshops, and Auctions (1999)
The use of tabbed navigation became more practical when toys, games, electronics, and auctions launched to shoppers as part of Amazon's hunger to expand service lines. A right sidebar was also added.
A market for third party sellers to showcase their products on Amazon was created, called zShops. Eventually, this evolved to become the Amazon Marketplace in 2000.
Amazon also experimented with Auctions in this timeframe, which later shut down in 2002.The Modern Amazon Logo With a Smile (2000)
Design agency Turner Duckworth created the now-iconic logo for Amazon in the year 2000 with a custom typeface. Cleverly, designer Anthony Biles devised a smile that connects the letters A and Z. Jeff Bezos wanted something produced quickly, without the typical market research and focus group feedback process. Reportedly, Bezos jokingly claimed 'Anybody who doesn't like that logo doesn't like puppies!'
Amazon Letter A Logo (2000)
Source: vmastoryboard.com
Tab Insanity (2000)
As Amazon's catalog diversified to include categories such as art, kitchen, lawn & patio, tools, and beauty, the tabs expanded in turn -- sometimes to a comical degree. Luke Wroblewski documented this in his excellent piece on the history of Amazon's tab navigation.
Amazon homepage with 15 tabs (2000)
Source: humanfactorsblog.org
Tabs Refined (2001-2003)
Amazon added additional categories such as eBooks, baby items, cell phones, and video games. With the growing number of product categories, the tabs couldn't grow infinitely to keep pace with the limited real estate in the top navigation area. The tabs were reined in and the categories were moved to the left sidebar area. The Amazon logo decreased in size to accommodate the changes.
In 2002 Amazon experimented with a limited number of prominent tabs at the top again, and added some graphic flair in the form of a shirt to announce the arrival of the apparel store. Additionally, Amazon began offering Gold Box deals, showcasing the best deals on the site.
Tabs moved to left sidebar (2001)
Source: the-digital-reader.com
Streamlined (2005)
The on-again off-again relationship with tabs continued, but this time they were severely curtailed. There were only tabs for the homepage, a personalized page of products called Your Store, and a link to all the product categories.
Amazon Prime began in February 2005, and prominent ads for the service were plastered on the homepage.
Interestingly, the category page that lists 30+ types of products also has some logos, that in retrospect, are fascinating to see. Amazon used to power the websites for Toys-R-Us, Babies-R-Us, and Target. Toys-R-Us and Babies-R-Us ended up going bankrupt, closing all their US and British stores in 2018. Target and Amazon are now fierce competitors in the retail sector. But back in 2005, online retail was a small slice of the pie and wasn't strategic enough for these companies to own themselves.
Amazon product categories with Toys-R-Us and Target (2005)
Source: archive.org
Amazon Smile My Account
Tabs Begone! (2008)
The tab structure was completely discontinued in favor of the left sidebar. The site embraced a blue and orange color scheme, complementing the orange from the smile in the logo.
The Kindle ebook reader launched in 2007, and Amazon used the most valuable space in all of retail -- its own homepage -- to market the product to potential buyers. In the image displayed below, Jeff Bezos celebrates the fact that Kindle is back in stock and invites customers to view the Amazon shareholder letter to understand the product roadmap. This really illustrates the relationship Bezos' attempted to cultivate with Amazon users.
10. Relationship of Parties
You and we are independent contractors, and nothing in this Participation Agreement or the Operational Documentation will create any partnership, joint venture, agency, franchise, sales representative, or employment relationship between you and us or our respective affiliates. You will have no authority to make or accept any offers or representations on our or our affiliates' behalf. You will not make any statement, whether on your Site or otherwise, that contradicts or may contradict anything in this Section 10. If you authorize, assist, encourage, or facilitate another person or entity to take any action related to the subject matter of this Participation Agreement, you will be deemed to have taken the action yourself.
11. Limitation of Liability
NONE OF US, AMAZON, OR THEIR AFFILIATES AND LICENSORS WILL BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES (INCLUDING ANY LOSS OF REVENUE, PROFITS, GOODWILL, USE, OR DATA) ARISING IN CONNECTION WITH THIS PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT, OR THE SERVICE OFFERINGS (DEFINED BELOW), EVEN IF WE HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF THOSE DAMAGES. FURTHER, THE AGGREGATE LIABILITY FOR US, AMAZON, AND THEIR AFFILIATES AND LICENSORS ARISING IN CONNECTION WITH THIS PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT, THE PROGRAM, THE AMAZONSMILE, AND THE SERVICE OFFERINGS WILL NOT EXCEED $100.
12. Disclaimers
THE PROGRAM, AMAZONSMILE, THE ORGANIZATION SITE, ANY PRODUCTS AND SERVICES OFFERED ON OR THROUGH AMAZONSMILE OR ORGANIZATION SITE, ANY CONTENT, THE SMILE.AMAZON.COM DOMAIN NAME, THE AMAZON SHOPPING APP, TRADEMARKS AND LOGOS OF OURS, AND ALL TECHNOLOGY, SOFTWARE, FUNCTIONS, MATERIALS, DATA, IMAGES, TEXT, AND OTHER INFORMATION AND CONTENT PROVIDED OR USED BY OR ON BEHALF OF US IN CONNECTION WITH THE PROGRAM (COLLECTIVELY THE 'SERVICE OFFERINGS') ARE PROVIDED 'AS IS' AND 'AS AVAILABLE.' WE DO NOT MAKE ANY REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED, STATUTORY, OR OTHERWISE WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OFFERINGS. EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT PROHIBITED BY APPLICABLE LAW, WE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OFFERINGS, INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, SATISFACTORY QUALITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, AND QUIET ENJOYMENT, AND ANY WARRANTIES ARISING OUT OF ANY COURSE OF DEALING, PERFORMANCE, OR TRADE USAGE. WE MAY DISCONTINUE ANY SERVICE OFFERING, OR MAY CHANGE THE NATURE, FEATURES, FUNCTIONS, SCOPE, OR OPERATION OF ANY SERVICE OFFERING, AT ANY TIME AND FROM TIME TO TIME. WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE OFFERINGS WILL CONTINUE TO BE PROVIDED, WILL FUNCTION AS DESCRIBED, CONSISTENTLY OR IN ANY PARTICULAR MANNER, OR WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ACCURATE, ERROR FREE, OR FREE OF HARMFUL COMPONENTS. WE WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR (A) ANY ERRORS, INACCURACIES, OR SERVICE INTERRUPTIONS, INCLUDING POWER OUTAGES OR SYSTEM FAILURES; OR (B) ANY UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO OR ALTERATION OF, OR DELETION, DESTRUCTION, DAMAGE, OR LOSS OF, YOUR SITE OR ANY DATA, IMAGES, TEXT, OR OTHER INFORMATION OR CONTENT. NO ADVICE OR INFORMATION OBTAINED BY YOU FROM US OR FROM ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY OR THROUGH THE SERVICE OFFERINGS WILL CREATE ANY WARRANTY NOT EXPRESSLY STATED IN THIS PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT. FURTHER, WE WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY COMPENSATION, REIMBURSEMENT, OR DAMAGES ARISING IN CONNECTION WITH (X) ANY LOSS OF PROSPECTIVE PROFITS OR REVENUE, ANTICIPATED SALES, GOODWILL, OR OTHER BENEFITS, (Y) ANY INVESTMENTS, EXPENDITURES, OR COMMITMENTS BY YOU IN CONNECTION WITH THIS PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT OR YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THE PROGRAM, OR (Z) ANY TERMINATION OR SUSPENSION OF THIS PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT OR YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THE PROGRAM.
13. Disputes
Any dispute relating in any way to the Program or this Participation Agreement will be resolved by binding arbitration, rather than in court, except that you may assert claims in small claims court if your claims qualify. The Federal Arbitration Act and federal arbitration law and the laws of the state of Washington, without regard to principles of conflict of laws, will govern this Participation Agreement and any dispute of any sort that might arise between you and us.
There is no judge or jury in arbitration, and court review of an arbitration award is limited. However, an arbitrator can award on an individual basis the same damages and relief as a court (including injunctive and declaratory relief or statutory damages), and must follow the terms of this Participation Agreement as a court would.
To begin an arbitration proceeding, you must send a letter requesting arbitration and describing your claim to our registered agent, Corporation Service Company, 300 Deschutes Way SW, Suite 304, Tumwater, WA 98051. The arbitration will be conducted by the American Arbitration Association ('AAA') under its rules, including the AAA's Supplementary Procedures for Consumer-Related Disputes. The AAA's rules are available at www.adr.org or by calling 1-800-778-7879. Payment of all filing, administration and arbitrator fees will be governed by the AAA's rules. We will reimburse those fees for claims totaling less than $10,000 unless the arbitrator determines the claims are frivolous. Likewise, we will not seek attorneys' fees and costs in arbitration unless the arbitrator determines the claims are frivolous. You may choose to have the arbitration conducted by telephone, based on written submissions, or in person in the county where you live or at another mutually agreed location.
We each agree that any dispute resolution proceedings will be conducted only on an individual basis and not in a class, consolidated, or representative action. If for any reason a claim proceeds in court rather than in arbitration, we each waive any right to a jury trial. We also both agree that you or we may bring suit in court to enjoin infringement or other misuse of intellectual property rights.
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Participation Agreement, we may seek injunctive or other relief in any state, federal, or national court of competent jurisdiction for any actual or alleged infringement of our or any other person or entity's intellectual property or proprietary rights. You further acknowledge and agree that our rights in the Content are of a special, unique, extraordinary character, giving them peculiar value, the loss of which cannot be readily estimated or adequately compensated for in monetary damages.
14. Miscellaneous
Amazon Smile Logo Image
By accepting this Participation Agreement you hereby consent to us sending your organization emails from time to time relating to the Program. You may not assign this Participation Agreement, by operation of law or otherwise, without our express prior written approval. Subject to that restriction, this Participation Agreement will be binding on, inure to the benefit of, and be enforceable against the parties and their respective successors and assigns. Our failure to enforce your strict performance of any provision of this Participation Agreement will not constitute a waiver of our right to subsequently enforce such provision or any other provision of this Participation Agreement. We may from time to time in our sole discretion make donations that exceed or supplement those strictly required under this Participation Agreement, but in no event will such actions create any right to receive excessive or supplemental donations at any later time or under similar circumstances. In the event of any conflict between this Participation Agreement and the Operational Documentation, the Participation Agreement will control over the Operational Documentation. Amazon, its affiliates and licensors are expressly intended third party beneficiaries of this Participation Agreement, but except as stated in this sentence this Participation Agreement no other person or entity other than you and us will have any right or interest arising out of this Participation Agreement. This Participation Agreement incorporates, and you agree to comply with, the most up-to-date version of all Operational Documentation, including any updates of the Operational Documentation from time to time. Whenever used in this Participation Agreement, the terms 'include(s),' 'including,' and 'for example' mean, respectively, 'include(s), without limitation,' 'including, without limitation,' and 'for example, without limitation.' Any determinations or updates that may be made by us, any actions that may be taken by us, and any approvals that may be given by us under this Participation Agreement, may be made, taken, or given in our sole discretion. All non-public information provided by us in connection with this Participation Agreement or the Program is considered confidential information, and you will maintain the same in strict confidence and not disclose the same to any third party (other than your affiliates) or use the same for any purpose other than your performance under this Participation Agreement, which restriction will be in addition to the terms of any confidentiality or non-disclosure agreement between the parties. This Participation Agreement (including the Operational Documentation) is the entire agreement between you and us regarding the Program and supersedes all prior agreements and discussions.
Thank you for visiting the Museum
This museum celebrates the heritage of technology we've all grown up with. Please help us maintain and grow the museum by making a small donation -- buy us a coffee? Thank you so much!
Check out our YouTube video showing the history of the Amazon.com website! It has all the images and captions from this page, and is easy on the eyes.
Early Stage Amazon (1994-1995)
In 1994, Jeff Bezos witnessed the exponential growth of the World Wide Web and saw an opportunity to realize online commerce. Initially named Cadabra, Bezos changed the name when his attorney convinced him that it sounded too much like Cadaver. Bezos also considered the name Relentless for a while before opting for Amazon, which reflected the ideas of grandiosity and abundance. The company was founded on July 5th, 1994.
Original Amazon Website (1995)
Amazon.com was launched in July 1995. The logo was an abstract letter 'A' with a winding river flowing through it and the words Amazon.com, Earth's biggest bookstore at the bottom. The color scheme of the site was typical for 1995 -- lots of gray and not terribly vibrant.
The company offered more than 1 million book titles, vastly outpacing any competition at the time. It featured a simple search engine to help find relevant books. Amazon also offered a free subscription to its personal notification service called 'Eyes and Editors,' enabling clients to proclaim their favorite authors and books. Whenever a new book of interest was added to the catalog, Amazon would automatically send the customer an email announcing the addition. Additionally, Amazon allowed clients to comment on books and exchange ideas with people around the world using review pages.
The original Amazon website (August 1995)
Source: Restored by Taran Van Hemert
TV Interview Footage (1997)
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos conducted many interviews in the early years, but this one in 1997 with KIRO 7 Seattle is notable because it had footage of the website at the time. The quality is poor, but still valuable to see Amazon in it's infancy. The computer in the closeup shots of the website appears to be an Apple Powerbook 1400, but the PC brand on Bezos' desk is unclear.
The first image below makes light of Amazon's massive collection of more than one million books. Amazon's Book of the Day link boasts 'a different title every day for the next 3,000 years.'
Amazon.com Homepage on TV broadcast (1997)
Source: KIRO 7 News
Amazon.com Search by Title, Author, or Subject (1997)
Source: KIRO 7 News
Jeff Bezos with Amazon.com (1997)
Source: KIRO 7 News
Logo Experimentation (1997)
The initial Amazon logo underwent several iterations, with changes in color scheme and fonts. With each iteration, the logo slowly came into shape, with the color palette becoming increasingly similar to the modern logo.
Amazon experiments with logo iterations (1997)
Source: fineprintart.com
Early Amazon Homepage (1997)
Utc time to cst. The company went public on May 15th, 1997 and raised $54 million in the process. Amazon's website underwent major changes, reflected in the design and more user-friendly interface. A left sidebar was introduced to enhance navigation, making the website more usable. Book covers and reviews were introduced to the experience to allow users to visualize the bookstore.
Amazon Smile Prime Photos
Amazon homepage image, restored by Version Museum (1997)
Source: ebaumsworld.com
Additional Logo Changes (1998)
In 1998, the Amazon logo went through additional iterations. A lowercase serif font served as the main logo for a short time, with the tag line 'Earth's Biggest Bookstore' underneath. But later that year, the company employed a sans serif all-caps logo with a bright yellow letter 'O' in the middle. This was also taken down in a few months; the logo soon morphed into the more familiar lowercase sans-serif logo with a slightly curved yellow line underneath. The motto 'Books, Music and More' floated above. With Amazon's ambitious expansion plans, the slogan was taken out after a couple of months.
Homepage with 'Earth's Biggest Bookstore' slogan (1998)
Source: blog.cake.hr
Introduction of Tabs & International Expansion (1998)
As Amazon's ambitions grew beyond selling books, tabs were introduced to the website. The site itself went through numerous alterations, with the search bar making its first prominent appearance to the top left of the homepage in the latter half of the year.
Furthermore, international expansion began, with acquisitions of online stores in the United Kingdom and Germany.
Product Expansion, Zshops, and Auctions (1999)
The use of tabbed navigation became more practical when toys, games, electronics, and auctions launched to shoppers as part of Amazon's hunger to expand service lines. A right sidebar was also added.
A market for third party sellers to showcase their products on Amazon was created, called zShops. Eventually, this evolved to become the Amazon Marketplace in 2000.
Amazon also experimented with Auctions in this timeframe, which later shut down in 2002.The Modern Amazon Logo With a Smile (2000)
Design agency Turner Duckworth created the now-iconic logo for Amazon in the year 2000 with a custom typeface. Cleverly, designer Anthony Biles devised a smile that connects the letters A and Z. Jeff Bezos wanted something produced quickly, without the typical market research and focus group feedback process. Reportedly, Bezos jokingly claimed 'Anybody who doesn't like that logo doesn't like puppies!'
Amazon Letter A Logo (2000)
Source: vmastoryboard.com
Tab Insanity (2000)
As Amazon's catalog diversified to include categories such as art, kitchen, lawn & patio, tools, and beauty, the tabs expanded in turn -- sometimes to a comical degree. Luke Wroblewski documented this in his excellent piece on the history of Amazon's tab navigation.
Amazon homepage with 15 tabs (2000)
Source: humanfactorsblog.org
Tabs Refined (2001-2003)
Amazon added additional categories such as eBooks, baby items, cell phones, and video games. With the growing number of product categories, the tabs couldn't grow infinitely to keep pace with the limited real estate in the top navigation area. The tabs were reined in and the categories were moved to the left sidebar area. The Amazon logo decreased in size to accommodate the changes.
In 2002 Amazon experimented with a limited number of prominent tabs at the top again, and added some graphic flair in the form of a shirt to announce the arrival of the apparel store. Additionally, Amazon began offering Gold Box deals, showcasing the best deals on the site.
Tabs moved to left sidebar (2001)
Source: the-digital-reader.com
Streamlined (2005)
The on-again off-again relationship with tabs continued, but this time they were severely curtailed. There were only tabs for the homepage, a personalized page of products called Your Store, and a link to all the product categories.
Amazon Prime began in February 2005, and prominent ads for the service were plastered on the homepage.
Interestingly, the category page that lists 30+ types of products also has some logos, that in retrospect, are fascinating to see. Amazon used to power the websites for Toys-R-Us, Babies-R-Us, and Target. Toys-R-Us and Babies-R-Us ended up going bankrupt, closing all their US and British stores in 2018. Target and Amazon are now fierce competitors in the retail sector. But back in 2005, online retail was a small slice of the pie and wasn't strategic enough for these companies to own themselves.
Amazon product categories with Toys-R-Us and Target (2005)
Source: archive.org
Amazon Smile My Account
Tabs Begone! (2008)
The tab structure was completely discontinued in favor of the left sidebar. The site embraced a blue and orange color scheme, complementing the orange from the smile in the logo.
The Kindle ebook reader launched in 2007, and Amazon used the most valuable space in all of retail -- its own homepage -- to market the product to potential buyers. In the image displayed below, Jeff Bezos celebrates the fact that Kindle is back in stock and invites customers to view the Amazon shareholder letter to understand the product roadmap. This really illustrates the relationship Bezos' attempted to cultivate with Amazon users.
Amazon homepage with Kindle ad (2008)
Source: archive.org
iPods and Blackberries (2009)
Design-wise, 2009 didn't see many changes. But in a museum like ours, who doesn't like to see old favorites like iPods and Blackberry phones? These classics were still huge sellers in 2009. The iPhone came out in June 2007 and was still in its infancy. The first Android device, the T-Mobile G1/HTC Dream, was launched in September 2008.
Amazon homepage with iPods and Blackberries (2009)
Source: archive.org
Amazon Blackberry Bold 9000 product page (2009)
Source: archive.org
Colorless Redesign (2012)
With a totally updated look, Amazon dropped almost all traces of bold colors in the borders and background. Orange fonts were used prominently to show prices and bolded text. A gray background gradient floated behind the top navigation area. Responsive web design elements started making their way into the site to allow phones, tablets, and desktops to all view the same webpage cleanly. Also, the left sidebar was eliminated.
Amazon product page for Lord Of The Rings (2012)
Source: archive.org
Minimalist, Responsive Design (2015)
The homepage moved to a modular design while still promoting all of Amazon's own product line.
Amazon selling itself (2016-2019)
Amazon continued to transform into a more spartan look with fewer items for sale on the homepage, but with more and more of those items being its own products and services.
In 2017, the site debuted the new products promotional banner ad at the top of the homepage. Clicking through this ad shows the customer a page full of unique and novel products the user presumably hasn't seen before.
Amazon homepage in August (2019)
Source: Version Museum
Amazon Smile Graphics
Amazon Smile Prime Photos
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