E-commerce giant Amazon announced that it will join the Indian government’s ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce) platform, and as part of its initial collaboration will integrate its Smart Commerce and logistics services with the ONDC network. Amazon logistics services include pickup and delivery, while Smart Commerce is a suite of SaaS (software-as-a-service) products hosted on AWS that can assist MSMEs build and scale their business and integrate it with the ONDC network.
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Amazon said it will continue to explore potential opportunities for a stronger integration with the ONDC network. ONDC is a non-profit organization set up by the commerce ministry’s Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) to democratise e-commerce services and provide small e-commerce stores and online sellers with a level playing field.
ONDC network is currently in beta phase and has conducted pilots in select cities. The ONDC network protocol allows anyone to create an e-commerce marketplace and tap into the ONDC network to get products displayed and delivered without having to worry about logistics. It has also been equated with a unified payment interface (UPI), which has made online payments faster and easier for millions of Indians.
In August 2022, ONDC signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Small Industries and Development Bank of India (SIDBI) to onboard its huge ecosystem of MSMEs on the network. Several companies including Microsoft, Meesho, Paytm, and Dunzo have already joined the platform. Flipkart, PhonePe, and JioMart are also reportedly planning to join the network.
Last December, at the inauguration of ONDC’s first office in New Delhi, Koshy had said that the network has 26 partners, which is expected to grow by another 125 by February. He added that 200 more platforms are working on technical integration with ONDC, while more than 400 buyers, sellers, and logistics partners are at the paperwork stage. ONDC will charge a small fees from platforms for maintenance and development of the network, Koshy had told Mint.
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