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"Signaling an intent to compete with Amazon in online shopping, Google announced Friday it is buying BufferBox. It's a startup that runs a parcel storage service similar to Amazon Locker.\nBoth services let you order online, then deliver your package to a locker in a local store \u2014 one that's open more hours than a post office. Instead of requiring a key, the locker can be opened with a PIN code. \n\"We want to remove as much friction as possible from the shopping experience, while helping consumers save time and money,\" said a Google spokesperson. \"We think the BufferBox team has a lot of great ideas around how to do that.\u201D\nIndeed, BufferBox has one major advantage over its Amazon counterpart \u2014 you can pick up any package in its lockers, including UPS and Fedex. Part of the YCombinator startup class of 2012, the company is currently running a trial service in Canada. \nIt's a major coup for the three founders, who work out of a startup incubator in Waterloo \u2014 just downstairs from Google's Canadian offices. They boast a grand total of seven employees. \"As online shopping becomes a bigger part of how you buy products, we look forward to playing a part in bringing that experience to the next level,\" the trio wrote on the BufferBox blog.\nAmazon began testing its Locker service in 7-Eleven stores a year ago. It's a more widespread rollout \u2014 and is about to spread to Staples and Radio Shack stores. But it has one distinct disadvantage: you can only use it for Amazon packages.\nCheck out BufferBox's offering in the video below. Is parcel pickup a big enough deal that it can help Google muscle in on Amazon's territory? And will it succeed? Let us know in the comments. \n"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2012/11/30/google-buys-bufferbox/>