15 companies you might not know are owned by Amazon (and one that got dumped for a huge loss)

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  • AbeBooks

    AbeBooks

    AbeBooks, known as a specialty bookstore, is able to procure backlist and out-of-print titles. And it's also owned by Amazon.

    Photo by: AbeBooks

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • Audible.com

    Audible.com

    If you've ever spent time commuting, you know what a treasure audio books can be. Audible got its start way back in 1995. In 2008, it got gobbled up by the house that CEO Jeff Bezos built.

    Photo by: Audible.com

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • Box Office Mojo

    Box Office Mojo

    For decades, Box Office Mojo tracked movie success using powerful algorithmic-driven systems. In 2008, almost a decade after its founding, Box Office Mojo became part of Amazon.

    Photo by: Box Office Mojo

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • ComiXology

    ComiXology

    If you love comics, you probably love ComiXology. It's a top distribution platform for digital versions of your favorite paper-based comics. And it's owned by Amazon.

    Photo by: ComiXology

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • Curse Gaming

    Curse Gaming

    I grew to know and love Curse because of how well it managed my World of Warcraft mods. Today, it's way more than mods, and way more than WoW. It's also now part of the Amazon empire.

    Photo by: Curse, Inc

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • Diapers.com

    Diapers.com

    Clicking on Diapers.com will now take you straight to Amazon's main site. Five years after founding, Amazon acquired Quidsi, the site's parent company. It got merged into Amazon when the separate business proved unprofitable. Poopers!

    Photo by: Diapers.com

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • DPReview.com

    DPReview.com

    If you're in the market for a camera, you've probably spent some time on DPReview.com. Even though there's absolutely no mention on the homepage, DPReview is part of Amazon and has been since 2010.

    Photo by: DPReview.com

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • Fabric.com

    Fabric.com

    Originally founded in 1993 as Phoenix Textiles Group, Fabric.com was one of Amazon's big surge of 2008 acquisitions. Although the About page mentions Amazon, there's no mention of the company on the Fabric homepage.

    Photo by: Fabric.com

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • Goodreads

    Goodreads

    Hugely popular among book nerds, Goodreads stayed independent for six years before it was acquired by Amazon in 2013. Although you can sign in with your Amazon account, nothing on the homepage mentions Amazon.

    Photo by: Goodreads

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • IMDb

    IMDb

    How many family arguments has this site settled? Certainly, for my wife and me, it's been the go-to site for many disagreements (although, sadly, I often lose). It's also an Amazon-owned business.

    Photo by: IMDb

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • The Book Depository

    The Book Depository

    A successful book distribution company in Europe, The Book Depository is known for free book delivery to 100 countries. Acquisition by Amazon appears to have left that intact.

    Photo by: The Book Depository

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • Twitch.tv

    Twitch.tv

    You might not think watching other people play video games would be fun. You'd be wrong. Twitch.tv is zooming up on YouTube for video views... and it's owned by Amazon.

    Photo by: Twitch.tv

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • Woot!

    Woot!

    Woot! Woot! Woot! Weird little deals, available for a short time. Some good, some bad. Now, it's all Amazon's.

    Photo by: Woot!

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • Zappos

    Zappos

    Zappos has a great return policy. I know this because my wife bought a pile of shoes for me, and then she returned them until she found a pair that fit. Known for great customer service, the company is an Amazon business now.

    Photo by: Zappos

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

  • The Drugstore.com disaster

    The Drugstore.com disaster

    Amazon put more than half a billion bucks into Drugstore.com. By the time it fire-saled it to Walgreens, that was worth just about $50 million. Oops. Apparently, Amazon couldn't print money for everything.

    Photo by: Walgreens

    Caption by: David Gewirtz

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Zappos

Zappos has a great return policy. I know this because my wife bought a pile of shoes for me, and then she returned them until she found a pair that fit. Known for great customer service, the company is an Amazon business now.

Caption by: David Gewirtz

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