Ouch. It’s been a brutal year for many in the capital markets and certainly for Amazon.com
shareholders. As of this writing, our shares are down more than 80% from when I wrote you last
year. Nevertheless, by almost any measure, Amazon.com the company is in a stronger position
now than at any time in its past… The year 2001 will be an important one in our development. As
a first step, we’ve set the goal of achieving a pro forma operating profit in the fourth quarter.
While we have a tremendous amount of work to do and there can be no guarantees, we have a
plan to get there, it’s our top priority, and every person in this company is committed to helping
with that goal.