A worker in a face mask walks by trucks parked at an Amazon facility. Reuters

Gulf Today Report

Amazon has deprioritised book sales as the company works to meet the surge in demand for key items such as household staples, medical supplies and other high demand products.

Amazon has informed suppliers, including publishers, that their goods will receive a low priority until at least April 5, according to both a letter “Publishers Weekly" (PW) has obtained that was sent to independent publishers, and an article Amazon posted on its Amazon Seller Central website.

"We are seeing increased online shopping and as a result some products such as household staples and medical supplies are out of stock," the e-commerce titan said.

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"We are temporarily prioritizing household staples, medical supplies and other high-demand products coming into our fulfillment centers so we can more quickly receive, restock and ship these products to customers."

The letter further apprises that beginning now until April 5, suppliers of products that are a lower priority should expect both reduced purchase orders and extended delivery windows for existing purchase orders.

The move will hurt independent publishers in particular, whose reliance upon the e-tailer to sell their books is often begrudging but has nonetheless become inevitable as Amazon has continued to dominate the book sales market year after year.

These new measures would affect US and EU markets, the article posted on Amazon Seller Central clarified.