Amazon to extend Prime Day to two days

Amazon is giving customers two full days to shop its annual sales extravaganza, now entering its fifth year.

Amazon announced that Prime Day will start at midnight (Pacific Time) on Monday, July 15 and – for the first time ever – run for 48 hours (compared to 36 hours in 2018.) The online giant is hoping to build on the success of last year’s Prime Day, which Amazon said was its biggest ever and during which it sold more than 100 million products despite an initial technical glitch.

Amazon did not disclose revenue figures for the 2018 sale, but a Bloomberg report estimated total revenue at $4.2 billion. The retailer reported that more new members signed up for Prime on July 16, when the sale started, than any single day in its history.

Besides the U.S., Prime Day is open to Prime members in the U.K., Spain, Singapore, Netherlands, Mexico, Luxembourg, Japan, Italy, India, Germany, France, China, Canada, Belgium, Austria and Australia.  This year, customers in the United Arab Emirates will be able to participate.

Amazon said it will offer more than one million deals on Prime Day, including new “lightning deals” with “jaw-dropping prices on top-tier brands.” Some of the biggest deals will be on Alexa-enabled devices — and one is already available. From June 25  through June 30 (or while supplies last), customers can save $120 on a Toshiba HD 43-inch Fire TV Edition Smart TV that is on sale for $179.99.

This year, for the first time, Amazon has created a dedicated page of Prime Day deals from U.S.-based innovators, artisans, and entrepreneurs.

“Our vision is that Prime Day should be the absolute best time to be a member – when you can enjoy shopping, savings, entertainment and some of the best deals Prime members have ever seen,” said Jeff Wilke, Amazon CEO worldwide consumer. “Stay tuned as we reveal exclusive savings at Whole Foods Market, thousands of new product launches, as well as world-class entertainment and more, leading up to Prime Day on July 15 and 16.”