Amazon launches shopping via Twitter

Online retailer Amazon has announced a partnership with Twitter that allows users to add products to their shopping carts by tweeting a special hashtag.

They can do so by replying to tweets containing a link to an Amazon product with #amazoncart in the US and #amazonbasket in the UK.

Users will still need to go to Amazon to pay and complete the purchase.

The move comes as firms are looking at ways to use social media platforms as tools to attract customers.

"Ultimately it is all about conversations that people are having on various platforms such as Twitter and Facebook about what interests them," said Sanjana Chappalli, Asia-Pac head of LEWIS Pulse, a firm specialising in digital marketing.

"Brands are keen to tap into these platforms, not least because they have hundreds of millions of active users."

:story: BBC News