All of that changed in 2000. While the new year did not bring the dreaded Y2K bug, another
virus swept through Internet business models: reality. Investors, once content to subsidize losses
for the sake of market share began to demand profitability. In 1999, the company greatly
expanded the categories on offer, fueling Amazon’s top line growth. Yet, Amazon remained
unprofitable. By 2001, Amazon was under the same scrutiny that felled lesser dot-coms. With
some analysts predicting liquidity problems for Amazon in late 2001 fatal for retailers who
depend on supplier credit it was essential that Amazon begin to show a profit.