Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT) And FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) Announce Logistic and Tech Partnership
Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT) and FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) have announced a multiyear joint partnership that will help the companies in transforming commerce using Microsoft’s cloud and FedEx’s logistics platform. FedEx partners with Microsoft to take on Amazon The partnership will see the companies working that together in developing new products as they align against e-commerce giant Amzon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN). Amazon has been leveraging its tech capabilities as it creates its logistics and delivery infrastructure. Last year FedEx terminated air shipping and ground contracts with Amazon, which was expanding its delivery services. FedEx and Amazon have increasingly become competitive against each other regarding the shipping of goods. Despite the termination of the contract with Amazon, FedEx still gets business from the e-commerce giant, especially from third-party sellers who prefer shipping with FedEx. However, Amazon will eventually have its shipping infrastructure and stop depending on third parties. The companies indicated that their first service will be FedEx Surround expected to offer real-time delivery and supply chain analytics to enable companies to enhance the shipping of goods. They will leverage Microsoft's Azure platform, which is ranked the second public cloud behind AWS and also use Microsoft's Dynamics 365 that competes with business software platforms such as Salesforce.com Inc. (NYSE:CRM). FedEx's new service to help business in predicting issues in shipment For now, details of the partnership have not been revealed, and it is not clear on the amount FedEx will pay Microsoft to use its cloud. The offering from the partnership expected sometime this year will use the IoT tech of FedEx in data collection and employ Microsoft's collection of services in analyzing the data. This will help in predicting issues likely to slow down shipping, such as clearance issues and severe weather. As a result, this will help companies in diverting shipments and changing routes for quick delivery. FedEx CEO Fred Smith indicated that the company has been developing granular commerce information for decades both domestically and globally as well as in industry SIC and local level. They will use the data in FedEx Surround to make the sales and inventory process discreet and focused. Read the full article