Is it possible to one day replace the privacy nightmare of Amazon with a decentralized merchant network? All I really use Amazon for these day is aggregate customer reviews by query, then buy the items as direct as possible. Why can’t respectable tools to this instead? I understand the cost, but could the tech be adopted?
I don’t know about “decentralized” as centralization is a driving influence in cost of marketing. Amazon is efficient because of every step of the way is centralized, from store front to the warehousing to the shipping. Sure there are some products that don’t ship by Amazon, but they’re usually at a cost disadvantage unless they’re unique. Plus payment processing is centralized and allows for consumer protections which wouldn’t be possible with something like crypto.
Amazon could be dethroned, but it would require very specific circumstances and unlikely wouldn’t be by a privacy minded entity.
Amazon is cheap because personal data subsidizes a lot. If they couldn’t sell targeted sponsor ads to you, they’d make that revenue up elsewhere.
Amazon is as you said extremely efficient on their warehouse and shipping because of their centralization and size. They can build extremely expensive warehouse to keep being efficient and surpass the competition.
There would maybe be possible to get an “enhanced” activity pub in order to protect privacy and financial informations. There is already something similar but without activity pub : a multitude of website where it is possible to buy things.
But there still needs to be some centralization, either through the postal service for small companies, or through centralised warehouse companies, with spzcialized equipments. And both of these things are already in place.
However if the OP wants a decentralized Amazon like efficiency, it won’t happen. The costs will increase and it will take more time, because the way the shipment will work will heavily depend on the seller.