Amazon.com Goes On Shopping Spree, Nabs Internet Movie Database, Others; Announces Stock Split

Database, Others; Announces Stock Split

by Mark Rabinowitz

Amazon.com, one of the leading internet retailers of books has announced
the purchase of three internet companies and also announced a pending 2
for 1 stock split, effective June 1st, for all shareholders on record as
of May 20th. The companies purchased include two retailers, Bookpages
Ltd and Telebook Inc, and a leading online resource for film fans, the
Internet Movie Database Ltd (IMDb). Bookpages and Telebook are leading
European online book sellers, and Amazon.com expects them to aid in its
planned entry into European book sales, while Amazon plans to use the
IMDb to launch its internet video sales efforts.

The Internet Movie Database (www.imdb.com) is an online listing
of over 100,000 films, compiled largely by the users of the database,
which launched in 1990. A free resource for independent filmmakers
and producers, the database allows users to search by film title or
cast/crew name, and includes searchable fields such as award winners,
production companies, genre, and location.