THIS IS INTERESTING: Amazon’s Achilles’ heel has always been shipping costs. But now they’re offering a sort of frequent flyer club where you get unlimited free shipping for $79 a year. (2-day air — overnight is just $3.99).

I’m sure that would save me money, and it suggests to me that Amazon is trying to get more business from people who are already heavy customers. (It also suggests to me that they have enough buying power to squeeze a hell of a deal out of their carriers.) Is this also a preemptive measure against up-and-coming competitors like Overstock.com? People keep telling me that they like Overstock, but I haven’t used it much. But though I like Amazon a lot, I’d certainly be happy to see them face competition.