Amazon India launches Prime service, three years after global launch

US based online shopping giant Amazon has launched its Prime service in India as it gears up to take on increasing competition in the e-commerce space. The service would launch in India almost three years after its global launch and interested users can sign up for the service on the company's dedicated page.

Amazon Prime offers a guaranteed free 1-day or 2-day delivery with no minimum order size. Prime members would also be able to  "enjoy discounted Same-Day, Morning and Scheduled Delivery to pin-codes in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and more cities across India," according to the company's website.

Additionally,  Amazon Prime members would also get 30-minute early access to Lightning Deals, as also member-only exclusives. However, not all the items on Amazon can be ordered for Prime delivery. Users would need t order items with "Prime" logo. They can also choose the Prime logo filter to view only the eligible items.

Amazon is offering the service priced Rs499, which is a Rs 500 discount on the actual Rs999 price. Also Amazon would not automatically charge users' debit or credit card for the Prime account after end of free trial?

''We will not auto-charge your credit, debit card or bank account saved on Amazon for your Prime membership at the end of free trial,'' says the retailer in the Terms and Conditions. So on 'Prime eligible' products, users would get one-day and two-day delivery to eligible addresses for free.

Same-day, Morning, and Scheduled delivery at eligible addresses would cost only Rs50 for Amazon Prime customers, as against earlier prices of Rs100 for one-day delivery, etc.