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Article analysis:

The article "Amazon is discontinuing Alexa’s celebrity voices, even if you paid for them" by The Verge reports on Amazon's decision to discontinue its celebrity voices feature for Alexa. The article highlights that the voices of Samuel L. Jackson, Shaquille O’Neal, and Melissa McCarthy are no longer available for purchase, and Amazon will also stop supporting them on Alexa devices.

The article provides some background information on the feature, including its low price point and the fact that many users expected to have access to it for longer than this. However, it does not provide any evidence or data to support these claims.

The article suggests that Amazon's decision to discontinue the feature could be a sign of broader issues with its Alexa sector. It cites a report from The Wall Street Journal that revealed Amazon CEO Andy Jassy heavily scrutinized the company’s Alexa sector due to operating losses exceeding $5 million in recent years. The article also notes layoffs affecting 18,000 employees earlier this year, with 2,000 of those cuts affecting workers in charge of Alexa and Echo products.

However, the article does not explore other potential reasons why Amazon may have decided to discontinue the celebrity voices feature. For example, it could be due to licensing costs or a shift in focus towards other features or technologies.

The article also mentions a recent report from Insider suggesting that Amazon has plans to rework Alexa amidst the rise of ChatGPT and may use its own large language model (LLM) to make Alexa “more proactive and conversational.” However, it does not provide any further details on this development or how it relates to the discontinuation of celebrity voices.

Overall, while the article provides some useful information on Amazon's decision to discontinue its celebrity voices feature for Alexa, it lacks depth and analysis. It presents one-sided reporting without exploring other potential reasons behind Amazon's decision or providing evidence for some of its claims. Additionally, the article does not explore potential counterarguments or risks associated with Amazon's decision.