No, Amazon Echo’s ‘Skills’ aren’t the new branded apps

GUEST: Back in early 2009, many brands realized for the first time that iPhone apps could be a branding vehicle. Suddenly, there was a frenzy of activity as marketers rushed branded apps to the marketplace.
In 2017, history seems to be repeating itself. In this case, many marketers are quickly building “Skills” on Amazon Echo. Such Skills include ordering a pizza on Domino’s, fetching an Uber, and connecting to your FitBit. In early January, Amazon announced it had 7,000 Skills