Amazon.com purchases Egghead.com Web site, some assets

<br>SEATTLE (AP) _ Amazon.com has purchased some assets of Egghead.com, which filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this year, for $6.1 million in cash. <br><br>Amazon purchased the company's Web

Wednesday, December 5th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

SEATTLE (AP) _ Amazon.com has purchased some assets of Egghead.com, which filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this year, for $6.1 million in cash.

Amazon purchased the company's Web site, intellectual property and product information, among other assets, on Nov. 26, Amazon spokeswoman Patty Smith said Tuesday. The Internet retailer plans to relaunch Egghead's Web site, she added.

Attempts to reach Egghead by telephone were unsuccessful.

Currently, those who visit Egghead are directed to Amazon's electronics store, but Smith said a site tailored to Egghead will launch later this year.

Egghead, a Menlo Park, Calif.-based online technology retailer, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a San Francisco court in August. The once promising dot-com had lost more than $345 million since its inception in 1994 as a technology products auction site called Onsale.com. Stand-alone Egghead stores had also existed since 1984.

Egghead's stock, which once traded at more than $100 per share, has been delisted from the Nasdaq Stock Exchange.

In August, Fry's Electronics agreed to buy Egghead's Web site and other assets for $10 million, but that deal fell through in October.

Smith said Amazon was interested in Egghead because of its well-known and well-respected brand name, and strong, loyal customer base. As part of the deal, Amazon will acquire customer information about Egghead, Smith said.

But Amazon will be barred from using that information for anything other than Egghead transactions unless the customer agrees to let Amazon have the customer information, Smith said.

Smith said Amazon _ also a promising dot-com that has yet to turn a profit _ was not concerned that it would have the same problems with its newly acquired Egghead assets that put Egghead out of business.

``I think it's sort of an apples and oranges comparison,'' she said. ``Amazon electronics has done very well for us.''