A report by former Wall Street Journal journalists claiming that Amazon was considering the launch of a free smartphone this year has been shot down by the online retail giant.

A statement from Amazon said there would be no smartphone launch this year, and if the firm did launch a device, said a spokesperson, “it would not be free”.

The Amazon statement on Sunday (8 September) was a response to an article by Jessica Lessin and Amir Efrati, quoting anonymous sources, which went viral after it was posted on Lessin’s website.

The sources themselves, however, were apparently sceptical that Amazon would be able to pull off a free smartphone, pointing out in the article that the company would have to strike difficult deals with both manufacturers and carriers to make it happen.

Lessin and Efrati have nonetheless elicited comment from Amazon, for the first time, that it will not offer a smartphone this year.