mazon has invested strategically for the long term in data center infrastructure and key offerings. For example, it priced the Kindle Fire below cost to further sales online e-books, entertainment, and cloud storage. This is analogous to razor companies selling inexpensive razors but earning high profits in sales of razor blades. All of Amazon's services and capabilities have been strengthened by acquisitions. A sampling of Amazon's acquisitions is listed in Table 3-8. Table 3-8 Amazon's Key Acquisitions Acquired Company: Description of Purchased Organization's Year Acquired Technologies Bookpages.co.u 1998 Online book retailer, based in the United Kingdom. Telebook: 1998 Operated under the brand name ABC Bucherdienst; was the largest online book retailer in Germany. It became Amazon's web site in Germany. Internet Movie Database User ratings and information on movies, actors, crew (IMDb): 1999 members, and other associated contributors. Joyo.com: 2004 Chinese e-commerce web site. BookSurge: 2005 A print-on-demand book company. Mobipocket.com 2005 An e-book software company. CreateSpace.com: 2005 Distributor of on-demand DVDs. Competition, Industry Structures, and Regulations Table 3-8 (Continued) Acquired Company: Description of Purchased Organization's Year Acquired Technologies Brilliance Audio: 2007 Publisher of audio books. Audible.com: 2008 Provider of digital audio books. Audible.com audio books can be downloaded to Amazon's Kindle e-reader. Zappos: 2009 Online shoe and clothing retailer. Touchco: 2010 A developer of touch screens using lower-cost technology than that on the iPad and iPod. As of July 2011, Amazon's Kindles were equipped with touch screens. Woot: 2010 A deal-a-day web site. Lovefilm: 2011 Offered streaming movies, DVD, and game rentals throughout Europe. Book Depository: 2011 One of the three largest online retailers along with Amazon in the United Kingdom. Apple As of this writing, Apple, Inc., is the world's most valuable company with a market value of approximately $510 billion. It creat