2:56:00 AM
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BANGALORE, India — Feb. 20, 2017 — Microsoft Corp.
and Flipkart, India’s leading marketplace, on Monday announced a
strategic partnership to provide consumers in India with the best online
shopping service. As a first step in the broad collaboration between
the two companies, Flipkart will adopt Microsoft Azure as its exclusive
public cloud platform. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Flipkart Group
CEO and co-founder Binny Bansal announced the news at an event in
Bangalore.
“At Microsoft, we aim to empower every Indian and every Indian
organization with technology, and key to this is forging strategic
partnerships with innovative companies like Flipkart,” Nadella said.
“Combining Microsoft’s cloud platform and AI capabilities with
Flipkart’s existing services and data assets will enable Flipkart to
accelerate its digital transformation in e-commerce and deliver new
customer experiences.”
“Flipkart has always been committed to its vision of transforming
commerce in India through technology,” Bansal said. “Given Microsoft’s
strong reputation in cloud computing, coupled with scale and
reliability, this partnership allows us to leverage our combined
strength and knowledge of technology, e-commerce and markets to make
online shopping more relevant and enriching for customers.”
Launched in 2007, Flipkart has amassed unparalleled scale in India
through customer-centric innovations that have made online shopping a
seamless, accessible and affordable experience for over 100 million
Indians. Its innovative disruptions like Cash on Delivery, No Cost EMI,
Product Exchange, easy returns, same-day delivery and instant refunds
have paved the way for the e-commerce market in India.
Starting with computing infrastructure, Microsoft Azure will
ultimately add a layer of advanced cloud technologies and analytics to
Flipkart’s existing datacenters. Microsoft’s strong presence in India,
along with its global scale, allows for continued growth and expansion,
setting the stage for the long-term partnership.
Flipkart plans to use the artificial intelligence, machine learning
and analytics capabilities in Azure, such as Cortana Intelligence Suite
and Power BI, to optimize its data for innovative merchandising,
advertising, marketing and customer service. With powerful insights
about its business and new, intelligent services, Flipkart can deliver
increasingly relevant and personalized experiences to its customers.
About Flipkart
Flipkart is India’s largest e-commerce marketplace with a registered
customer base of over 100 million. Flipkart offers more than 80 million
products across 80+ categories including Smart Phones, Books, Media,
Consumer Electronics, Furniture, Fashion and Lifestyle.
Launched in October 2007, Flipkart is known for its path-breaking
services like Cash on Delivery, experience zones and a 10-day
replacement policy. Flipkart was the pioneer in offering services like
In-a-Day Guarantee (50 cities) and Same-Day-Guarantee (13 cities) at
scale. With over 100,000 registered sellers, Flipkart has redefined the
way brands and MSME’s do business online.
About Microsoft
Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) is the leading platform and
productivity company for the mobile-first, cloud-first world, and its
mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet
to achieve more.
