Amazon suspending branded delivery service to handle surge in orders

The online retail giant told customers it will pause its Amazon Shipping program, a service that competes directly with FedEx and UPS. The Wall Street Journal first reported the news Wednesday. 

“We understand this is a change to your business, and we did not take this decision lightly,” Amazon said in a note to shippers, according to the Journal. “We will work with you over the next several weeks so there is as little disruption to your business as possible.”

An Amazon spokesperson confirmed in a statement to The Hill that the company is pausing the service. 

“We regularly look at a variety of factors across Amazon to make sure we’re set up in the right way to best serve our customers,” the spokesperson said.

The Amazon Shipping service consists of drivers picking packages up from businesses and delivering them to consumers, rather than shipping orders from Amazon’s warehouses. 

The company is pausing the shipping service in order to handle the surge in its own customers’ orders. 

Amazon has notified online shoppers they may experience shipping delays as it manages an increase of orders amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

Amazon said in March the company would be hiring around 100,000 warehouse and delivery workers in response to the increased demand.

Updated: 11:55 a.m.