E-Commerce Blog

The retail marketplace has become intensely competitive, as retailers increasingly compete across traditional segment boundaries, brands expand their direct-to-consumer channels, and consumers exercise their growing power to seek out the best value for their dollar. In addition, consumer expectations are on the rise, as they continue to have rich and immersive experiences elsewhere on the Web. In the e-commerce world, retailers must ensure that they are delivering differentiated and satisfying customer shopping experiences to attract and retain customers.

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The Ultimate Online Shopping Experience, Part 1: Strategy and Design

In an era of dazzling battery-powered portable devices including iPods, computers and cell phones, it’s hard to imagine what it’s like to be unable to catch the news and entertainment anytime and anywhere we want. But millions of people who own portable televisions, including those who depend on them when they flee their homes or lose power during hurricanes and other emergencies, may soon return to the dark ages. Virtually all of the nation’s 7 million battery-powered TVs receive analog signals.

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When Digital TV Is In, Portable TV Is Out

Even before the U.S. economic outlook darkened as the gravity of the financial crisis came into focus, companies started to get more aggressive in their attempts to hold onto old customers and attract new ones. Telephone companies’ offers for two months of free service and reduced rates, discounted gym membership renewals, and generous gift cards from high-end department stores all underscore a pervasive fear on Main Street: With the uncertainty around the credit seize-up, consumers may be digging in for a long hibernation.

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Keeping Customers in a Crummy Economy

Seven years ago, after the release of the Sony PlayStation 2 and the Microsoft Xbox, it seemed as though Nintendo, once a market leader, would never regain its No. 1 position. The GameCube, which sold a paltry 21.74 million units worldwide, had been a relative dud for the longtime gaming champion. However, undeterred by its third-place position, Nintendo had a plan for the next generation of gaming consoles. Flash forward to 2008: Nintendo has sold some 32.64 million units of the Wii worldwide, according to video game sales tracking firm VG Chartz.

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Revenge of the Wii, Part 2

“It is a race, and we’re not slowing down.” That is how Ross A. Mauri, the general manager of IBM’s Power Systems product series, describes competing against Sun Microsystems and HP for the Unix server market. IBM announced a number of new products and upgrades Tuesday to help keep its current lead in revenue — 35 percent of the market in the second quarter of 2008 compared to Sun’s 29 percent and HP’s 26.
The Power Systems product line is the latest generation of business computer servers that started with the AS/400 in 1988 in Rochester, Minn.

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IBM Hits Its Stride in Unix Server Race