Amazon partners with Just Eat Takeaway to offer a free one-year Grubhub+ subscription to US Prime members; Amazon gets equity in Grubhub; DoorDash drops 9%+
Amazon tried but then ultimately stepped away from building its own cost-intensive Grubhub and DoorDash competitor in the U.S. back in 2019.
Context & Ripple Effects
Grubhub entered the arrangement after Just Eat Takeaway had begun exploring a partial or full sale of the business, while DoorDash had already overtaken Grubhub in U.S. monthly sales and market share. Amazon is choosing distribution and membership benefits over rebuilding a standalone delivery challenger.
The tie-up became a deeper channel relationship when Amazon later put Grubhub food ordering inside its app and made Grubhub+ a permanent Prime benefit. That progression makes the initial subscription offer and equity stake an opening move in a broader Amazon-Grubhub integration.
First-order effects
- U.S. Prime members receive a year of Grubhub+ at no added charge, giving Grubhub immediate access to Amazon's membership base while Amazon gains an equity position in Grubhub.
- DoorDash faces an immediate investor repricing, with its shares falling more than 9% after a major consumer membership program aligned with a rival.
Second-order effects
- Grubhub's strengthened distribution gives Just Eat Takeaway a route to support the U.S. business it had been considering selling, rather than relying solely on a standalone turnaround.
- DoorDash and other delivery services face pressure to defend subscriber retention and restaurant demand against a delivery benefit bundled into Prime.
Third-order effects
- Food delivery competition is shifting toward access to large consumer memberships and app distribution, not solely restaurant and courier networks.
- If such bundles persist, delivery platforms with strategic retail partners may gain more durable customer-acquisition advantages than standalone subscription offerings.
The trend: U.S. food delivery is becoming a membership-distribution contest, with platforms using retail ecosystems to subsidize and retain demand.