Amazon.com Inc., which has lost billions overseas trying to replicate its U.S. success, is now attempting to crack one of the biggest and most sparsely populated nations where bricks-and-mortar retailers are king.

The Seattle-based company, which sells everything from groceries and big-screen TVs to high-end fashion, says it's "actively looking" for a warehouse as it prepares to start operations in Australia. Anticipating a price war, analysts have almost halved profit forecasts for local electronics chains such as Harvey Norman Holdings Ltd. and JB Hi-Fi Ltd.

But the world's largest online retailer, which has exported its model to Germany, the U.K., Japan and most recently India, faces unprecedented challenges in Australia.