Amazon has announced plans for a new hub in central London to focus on the development of digital media products.
The eight-storey workplace in Glasshouse Yard, near Barbican and close to Old Street’s “Silicon Roundabout”, will house the design and development teams from LoveFilm and Pushbutton – which are both owned by Amazon – along with software development engineers, graphic designers and user interface (UI) professionals. Potentially hundreds of staff could be taken on.
Specific projects have not been named by Amazon but the online retailer said the areas it would work on include creating interactive digital services for TVs, games consoles, smartphones and PCs, as well as further development for digital media on its website, and surrounding that with services and application programming interfaces (APIs) for the new inventions.
There will also be investment going into extending existing products, such as LoveFilm streaming services.
London mayor Boris Johnson called Amazon’s decision a “splendid feather in our cap” for London’s growing technology sector.
“We know we have the talent, the space and infrastructure to make the most of the digital economy,” he said. “Amazon’s investment propels us well up the league table of global tech cities.”
The centre will open in the next few months. New managing director Paula Byrne claimed London was an obvious location choice.
“London is a hotbed of tech talent, and testament to that fact is Amazon choosing the capital as the location for its new global digital media development centre,” she said.
“Innovation is part of the Amazon DNA, and we are creating a British centre of excellence to design and develop the next generation of TV and film services for a wide range of digital devices,” said Byrne.
Amazon’s UK HQ will remain in Slough It also has an additional London office on Newman Street in the West End.
