Amazon quietly launches online freight brokerage platform

Joyce Abaño

2nd May 2019

E-commerce giant Amazon has officially launched an online freight brokerage platform that connects shippers with available trucks, offering service to consumers in five Eastern states.

Amazon has been testing the online service, freight.amazon.com, since 2018, matching truck drivers with shippers, getting instant quotes on the packages they want to ship between warehouses.

The new platform, which is currently in beta, is available for shipments between warehouses in Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.

Amazon’s new service, which helps the company better manage its existing network of carriers and expedite the cargo matching process, poses risks to freight brokers and truckload carriers, according to analysts and industry experts.

According to an article on CNBC, Amazon has confirmed the service’s existence, saying it works with many line-haul service providers in its transportation network and has long utilised them to carry loads for the company.

“This service, intended to better utilise our freight network, has been around in various forms for quite some time,” the spokesperson said.

Amazon is promoting the service as a way for shippers to get easy access to its large carrier network.