Wine.com Launches Third-Party Marketplace to Take on Amazon

In a preemptive measure, Wine.com opened an online marketplace on Monday for third-party sellers to sell and distribute their wines amid reports that Amazon is planning to launch a similar business later this year.

The marketplace, which has been in beta for some months, allows wineries to list their wines for sale in 20 states. Participating sellers must deliver their goods to a Wine.com storage facility; Wine.com handles all shipping, warehousing, compliance and customer service. Subscribers to Wine.com's $49-per-year free shipping service -- its version of Amazon Prime -- will not have to pay anything extra for Marketplace wines.

Michael Osborn, founder and vice president…
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