Amazon Web Services to Launch Oracle Edition of Amazon Relational Database Service

Amazon Web Services LLC (AWS), a subsidiary of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), today announced that it plans to make Oracle Database 11g available via the Amazon Relational Database Service (Amazon RDS), during the second quarter of 2011. Amazon RDS is a web service that makes it easier to set up, operate, and scale a relational database in the cloud. Amazon RDS for Oracle will include flexible pricing options for customers. Those with existing Oracle licenses will be able to run Oracle Databases on Amazon RDS with no additional software licensing or support charges. Those without existing Oracle licenses can take advantage of on-demand hourly licensing with no upfront fees or long-term commitments. Businesses and developers can visit [http://aws.amazon.com/rds/oracle] to learn more, sign up to be notified when the service is available, and request a briefing from an AWS associate.

Amazon RDS reduces the amount of time required to provision a relational database, as well as the underlying infrastructure hardware and software, from days to just minutes. It also manages ongoing maintenance tasks such as updating database software, taking continuous database backups for point-in-time recovery, and exposing key operational metrics via a web dashboard. In addition, businesses can scale the compute and storage capacity associated with a database in minutes – with a few clicks of an intuitive management console. Amazon RDS already supports MySQL. With support for the Oracle Database engine, Amazon RDS will streamline database administration for multiple editions of Oracle Database 11g Release 2, freeing up developers to spend more time on the differentiating parts of their applications rather than the muck of maintaining and scaling their database infrastructure.

“Customers were really excited when we launched Amazon RDS for MySQL because it allowed them to run familiar MySQL databases while offloading operational responsibilities and capital costs associated with physical servers and datacenters. Enterprises have asked when we’d offer the same functionality for Oracle Databases. We’re pleased to share that we’re not only releasing it soon, but also that we’re ready to have conversations with interested customers so they can plan for future deployments,” said Raju Gulabani, Vice President of Database Services at Amazon Web Services.

“Amazon continues to be a pioneer in cloud computing, and we’ve worked closely together to make sure that the power of the Oracle portfolio is available to customers who want to run them in the AWS cloud. With more and more Oracle Database users interested in running on AWS, we are working with AWS to make sure the ease of fulfillment and platform agility of Amazon RDS is available for the Oracle Database,” said Mark Townsend, vice president, Oracle Database Server Technologies.

AWS plans to offer a variety of licensing options for running the Oracle Database on Amazon RDS, including:

• “Bring Your Own License” – (BYOL) – Customers with existing Oracle Database licenses can apply them to run Oracle Databases on Amazon RDS with no additional software licensing or support charges.
• On-Demand Database Instances (DB Instances) – This pay-by-the-hour licensing option requires no pre-existing licenses, up-front fees, or long-term commitments to run Oracle Databases on Amazon RDS. Customers pay a simple, hourly rate per RDS Database Instance running Oracle Database 11g. The hourly rate depends upon the Oracle Database edition and DB Instance size option selected.
• Reserved DB Instances – Reserved DB Instances allow customers to make a low, one-time payment for each DB Instance and in turn receive the option to run that DB Instance at a significant discount on the ongoing hourly usage charge. Both one-year and three-year reservation terms will be available.

Technical support for Oracle Database will be available from Oracle for BYOL DB Instances, and from AWS with backline support from Oracle for On-Demand and Reserved DB Instances.

Developers can learn more about Amazon RDS and how it offloads much of the operational work associated with maintaining relational databases by going to http://aws.amazon.com/rds.

About Amazon.com

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle, opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth's Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth's most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as Books; Movies, Music & Games; Digital Downloads; Electronics & Computers; Home & Garden; Toys, Kids & Baby; Grocery; Apparel, Shoes & Jewelry; Health & Beauty; Sports & Outdoors; and Tools, Auto & Industrial. Amazon Web Services provides Amazon's developer customers with access to in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon's own back-end technology platform, which developers can use to enable virtually any type of business. Kindle, Kindle 3G and Kindle DX are the revolutionary portable readers that wirelessly download books, magazines, newspapers, blogs and personal documents to a crisp, high-resolution electronic ink display that looks and reads like real paper. Kindle 3G and Kindle DX utilize the same 3G wireless technology as advanced cell phones, so users never need to hunt for a Wi-Fi hotspot. Kindle is the #1 bestselling product across the millions of items sold on Amazon.

Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com, www.amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.de, www.amazon.co.jp, www.amazon.fr, www.amazon.ca, www.amazon.cn, and www.amazon.it. As used herein, "Amazon.com," "we," "our" and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise.

Forward-Looking Statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly from management's expectations. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to competition, management of growth, new products, services and technologies, potential fluctuations in operating results, international expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment center optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption, inventory, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com's financial results is included in Amazon.com's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings.