Amazon closing AmazonSmile

[gbm]

In 2013, we launched AmazonSmile to make it easier for customers to support their favorite charities. However, after almost a decade, the program has not grown to create the impact that we had originally hoped. With so many eligible organizations—more than 1 million globally—our ability to have an impact was often spread too thin.

We are writing to let you know that we plan to wind down AmazonSmile by February 20, 2023. ...

https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/com...greater-impact
bernie

[ZodWallop]

Jeff's next rocket ride isn't gonna pay for itself.

Other businesses don't have an equivalent, so not mad at them. But their justification is nonsense.

With so many eligible organizations—more than 1 million globally—our ability to have an impact was often spread too thin.

The could always narrow it down, using something like CharityWatch.

[twowheels]

twowheels closing Amazon Prime

What's the point? Nothing ships in two days anymore, everything sits for a week before even leaving the warehouse... half of the shipments get lost somewhere between some no-name carrier and USPS... their worker treatment is garbage... they've got a huge counterfeit problem... 99% of what they sell is junk that belongs on wish.com... I've not watched anything on Prime Video in over a year... I've not listened to anything on Amazon Music in just as long...

Time to hang it up.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by twowheels

What's the point? Nothing ships in two days anymore, everything sits for a week before even leaving the warehouse... half of the shipments get lost somewhere between some no-name carrier and USPS... their worker treatment is garbage... they've got a huge counterfeit problem... 99% of what they sell is junk that belongs on wish.com... I've not watched anything on Prime Video in over a year... I've not listened to anything on Amazon Music in just as long...

None of that has anything to do with AmazonSmile...

[twowheels]

I guess I didn’t include the explicit statement that this was the last straw. I was talking to my wife last week about canceling, then this showed up in my email just before I saw this post which convinced me that I’m truly done with them.

[astrangerhere]

As an employee of a nonprofit who benefited from this program, this is sad to me.

As a person, I avoid Amazon as much as possible.

[Pjama]

Originally Posted by twowheels

I guess I didn’t include the explicit statement that this was the last straw. I was talking to my wife last week about canceling, then this showed up in my email just before I saw this post which convinced me that I’m truly done with them.

What showed up in your email? I don’t see anything here.

[Pjama]

What a shame that small amounts of monetary help for one million different charities is not considered sufficiently impactful. (!) My Amazon smile benefited a Panamanian charity (Smiles, if I remember correctly) that gives poor children surgery to fix their hare lips or other defects. What a shame.

I think now that JB has gone, we are seeing the hard nosed money people come in who DGAF about anyone. A mealy mouthed excuse from them regarding the closure.

[Paperbackstash]

Aw, that is a shame.

I will say that Amazon kept reverting from my smile link and I kept forgetting about it half the time, but I did like the program, just wished they kept the settings saved properly. I had chosen a rabbit rescue organization.

[jhowell]

Originally Posted by Pjama

What showed up in your email? I don’t see anything here.

This is the email I received:

Dear customer,

In 2013, we launched AmazonSmile to make it easier for customers to support their favorite charities. However, after almost a decade, the program has not grown to create the impact that we had originally hoped. With so many eligible organizations—more than 1 million globally—our ability to have an impact was often spread too thin.

We are writing to let you know that we plan to wind down AmazonSmile by February 20, 2023. We will continue to pursue and invest in other areas where we’ve seen we can make meaningful change—from building affordable housing to providing access to computer science education for students in underserved communities to using our logistics infrastructure and technology to assist broad communities impacted by natural disasters.

To help charities that have been a part of the AmazonSmile program with this transition, we will be providing them with a one-time donation equivalent to three months of what they earned in 2022 through the program, and they will also be able to accrue additional donations until the program officially closes in February. Once AmazonSmile closes, charities will still be able to seek support from Amazon customers by creating their own wish lists.

As a company, we will continue supporting a wide range of other programs that help thousands of charities and communities across the U.S. For instance:

• Housing Equity Fund: We’re investing $2 billion to build and preserve affordable housing in our hometown communities. In just two years, we’ve provided funding to create more than 14,000 affordable homes—and we expect to build at least 6,000 more in the coming months. These units will host more than 18,000 moderate- to low-income families, many of them with children. In one year alone, our investments have been able to increase the affordable housing stock in communities like Bellevue, Washington and Arlington, Virginia by at least 20%.

• Amazon Future Engineer: We’ve funded computer science curriculum for more than 600,000 students across over 5,000 schools—all in underserved communities. We have plans to reach an additional 1 million students this year. We’ve also provided immediate assistance to 55,000 students in our hometown communities by giving them warm clothes for the winter, food, and school supplies.

• Community Delivery Program: We’ve partnered with food banks in 35 U.S. cities to deliver more than 23 million meals, using our logistics infrastructure to help families in need access healthy food – and we plan to deliver 12 million more meals this year alone. In addition to our delivery services, we’ve also donated 30 million meals in communities across the country.

• Amazon Disaster Relief: We’re using our logistics capabilities, inventory, and cloud technology to provide fast aid to communities affected by natural disasters. For example, we’ve created a Disaster Relief Hub in Atlanta with more than 1 million relief items ready for deployment, our Disaster Relief team has responded to more than 95 natural disasters, and we’ve donated more than 20 million relief products to nonprofits assisting communities on the ground.

• Community Giving: We support hundreds of local nonprofits doing meaningful work in cities where our employees and their families live. For example, each year we donate hundreds of millions of dollars to organizations working to build stronger communities, from youth sport leagues, to local community colleges, to shelters for families experiencing homelessness.

We’ll continue working to make a difference in many ways, and our long-term commitment to our communities remains the same—we’re determined to do every day better for our customers, our employees, and the world at large.

Thank you for being an Amazon customer.

[stumped]

Originally Posted by twowheels

I guess I didn’t include the explicit statement that this was the last straw. I was talking to my wife last week about canceling, then this showed up in my email just before I saw this post which convinced me that I’m truly done with them.

last straw for me also , probably [ i say probably because I am paid up until May for amazon prime, and my moral outrage may have worn off my then ]. But if I tell enough people I will be quitting then maybe I will stick to it

[Catlady]

It's the dishonesty of Amazon's claim that stands out to me. AmazonSmile donations being "spread too thin" was a feature, not a bug. It's what made this program worthwhile: the customer's ability to help support small, community-based nonprofits that don't have paid administrators and fundraising departments, and rely largely on individual contributions. These groups are struggling to do good work, and every penny helps them. But Amazon decides this isn't impactful enough? What BS. They pretend to care about having an impact while blithely sticking it to every small nonprofit that has put the donations to good use over the years.

[Tarana]

Some MBA wanted splash to get Amazon attention rather than the quiet donation to a million charities. I'll continue to buy from Amazon. I have no moral outrage over Amazon's choice of charities. It was a nice 10 years that I could benefit a charity without additional funds from me, but no program lasts forever. Disappointed, yes. The rescue place got about $300 per quarter - they will get a bigger donation and then none. Sucks, but there it is.

[twowheels]

I had mine set to an LGBT support organization in a town where I used to live that I knew did a lot of great work supporting mental and sexual health and providing a safe place for people who might not otherwise be able to find one to hang out. My smile page says that about $150 has gone to them from my purchases over the years — doesn’t seem useless to me.

[astrangerhere]

Originally Posted by Tarana

I have no moral outrage over Amazon's choice of charities.

I should be clear, I've not wanted anything to do with Amazon for years. This is just irksome as my job actually benefits from some of those charitable funds. I'd just prefer some of these bozos go to the Dolly Parton school of philanthropy.