Amazon's motivation for acquiring TikTok and the implications for its e-commerce and retail media businesses
Just days before President Trump delayed the start of enforcement of the sale or ban law for an additional seventy-five days, Amazon made a last-minute offer to purchase TikTok last week. Amazon would continue to be the leading retail media network and online retailer in the United States if it were to acquire TikTok.
Amazon.ie launched in Ireland recently on 18th March. Irish customers can now take advantage of a wide selection of more than 200 million products, quick delivery, and a new Prime membership option. If Amazon decides to buy TikTok, Irish consumers could benefit from Amazon's new advantages.
There are three ways Amazon's acquisition of TikTok would make Amazon an even bigger powerhouse.
Improving the path from product discovery to purchase: Amazon could take control of the entire shopping experience by improving the process from finding a product to purchasing it. Since Amazon has historically had trouble completing the kind of unavoidable shopping that takes place on social media, it would be wise to take over TikTok, which has mastered this space. The current feature that enables TikTok users to make purchases straight from Amazon without leaving the platform could be expanded.
Growing ad inventory: Amazon would be able to scale its offsite businesses with ease by acquiring TikTok, which has millions of users and an integrated social commerce business. Advertisers could test more captivating interactive ad formats, such as shoppable ads, thanks to TikTok's capabilities.
Expand access to valuable first-party data: Amazon could strengthen its own ad platform by integrating TikTok's transactional data and retail media stream, improving targeting, personalisation, and campaign performance across various channels.
Source: eMarketer, 2025
