Dive Brief:
- T.J. McCue at Forbes writes that Google's stake in Uber could come in handy in the wake of Amazon.com's announcement that it will roll out delivery drones in the next five years.
- Uber has already tried out non-taxi services outside of its core offerings, including ice cream and rose delivery, leading many to speculate that other initiatives could follow.
- It's worth noting that car-based delivery capabilities would put Google in a nice situation, even if Amazon airborne drones fail to take off and Amazon is left with its fleet of trucks.
Dive Insight:
McCue raises a fine point here that is worth some attention. Right after Amazon made its announcement, another similar revelation followed from UPS. The U.S. government has yet to issue guidelines for how such drones would be regulated, and skeptics have speculated that the drone story may end of just being a PR stunt. In the end, the land-based delivery front in the U.S. may be the real space that we should be watching, rather than looking up at the clouds.
