Ecommerce Industry News

 Eccomerce News

• Groupon Files for $750 Million IPO

  Pioneer of group coupon online services makes its move to go public

• Alliance Data Systems Acquires Aspen for $345 Million

  Alliance Data's Epsilon division will grow analytics and marketing platform with Aspen buy.

• EBay Buys GSI Commerce for $2.4 Billion

  Ebay aims to grows its business with acquisition of ecommerce vendor.

• IBM Helps Commerce Companies Get Smarter

  Big Blue estimates that the market opportunity for its Smarter Commerce initiative could run as high as $70 billion.

• Facebook to Offer Online Group Discounts

  The social networking site is rolling out tests of an online coupon service to be shared among friends.

• One Pass More Profitable for Publishers?

  Google introduces new payment system for digital content that's less prohibitive than Apple's plan -- and is expected to be more profitable for publishers.

• Apple Issues iPad Content Subscription Terms

  Publishers looking to offer magazine or newspaper subscriptions as well as video and music to Apple's App Store will have to pay help Apple a hefty commission.

• eBay Sees ECommerce Everywhere, Opportunities Abound

  Noting that the lines between online and bricks-and-mortar stores retail are blurred, eBay's John Donahoe looks to new platforms.

• Online Retail Explodes; Tops $43 Billion for Q4

  The latest sales figures from comScore show a big jump in online retail sales for the most recent quarter.

• Google's Android Advance Plays to Bigger Tablets

  A preview of the next version of Android shows a flashy new interface and handy widgets. Google also announced some key improvements to the Android Market.

• Verisign Fesses Up About 2010 Hack Attacks

  Verisign has alarmed the online security industry with its reluctant disclosure of repeated hack attacks on its network in 2010. The infrastructure company supports key servers of the Internet's backbone, serving as Top Level Domain host for .com, .org and .gov. That it was repeatedly penetrated in 2010 was first quietly disclosed in an SEC filing in October 2011.

• Content Intent, Part 2

  It can be a little tricky talking about how and why media outlets allow, and indeed encourage, the diffusion of their content throughout the Web. For starters, people tend to be tightlipped about this strategy. No one from CNN, Fox News, MSNBC or Viacom agreed to speak on the record for this article. They are, apparently, much less eager to discuss sharing content than they are to actually share it.

• Desk.com Makes Help Desks More Mobile, Social

  Salesforce.com unveiled a new customer service help desk tool this week. Desk.com works with customer requests delivered over a social network. It is the byproduct of Salesforce.com's acquisition of Assistly last year. However, it is no mere product integration, said Alex Bard, former Assistly CEO and now vice president and general manager of Desk.com.

• Zuckerberg to Keep Iron Grip on Facebook's Reins

  Facebook has finally filed for its IPO. The social networking giant submitted an application to the SEC on Wednesday. It plans to raise up to $5 billion. CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who cofounded the company in February 2004, currently holds a 28.4 percent stake. Details in the SEC document illuminated the extent of Zuckerberg's control over Facebook.

• Samsung Galaxy Tab Design-Around Passes Muster With German Court

  Apple has suffered a setback in its multicountry, extremely complex, and seemingly everlasting patent fight with Samsung. In the latest episode, its request to ban Samsung from selling two devices in Germany -- its Galaxy Tab 10.1N tablet and its Galaxy Nexus smartphone -- was rejected by the Munich Regional Court.

• Facebook Laid Bare for All to See

  Facebook filed it's long-awaited S-1 form with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday, announcing its intent to raise $5 billion and begin public trading. The highly anticipated move caused enough of a stir to clog traffic on the SEC's website and provided some insight into the social network's financial situation.

• Solving the Snowballing Wireless Data Problem

  Every day we hear about how AT&T Mobility and Verizon Wireless are running around like chickens with their heads cut off trying to grab as much wireless spectrum as they can. We all remember the quality problems AT&T smartphone customers suffered. That same future is in store for every carrier and every customer unless we come up with a solution.

• Apple's Enterprise Coup d'Etat

  As a long-time Mac and iPhone user, I always enjoy seeing new people I work with embrace the Apple way. At the same time, while out and about at work conferences and trips, I consistently see more and more iPads and iPhones. I'm sure some of this is my ability to recognize an Apple product while my ability to spot two different Android-based phones is a little less refined.

• 3 Painfully Common Misuses of CRM

  Every tool has a purpose. That's never more clear than when you see a neophyte do-it-yourselfer trying to use a tool for a purpose other than what it was designed for. For instance, anyone wielding a hammer while trying to fix a car's engine is probably not going to succeed.

• Super Bowl Advertisers Pile On With Multimedia Blitz

  Superbowl Sunday, the biggest, flashiest U.S. sports event of the year, is also the country's biggest advertising event of the year, carrying some of the cleverest ads on TV. This year, Superbowl Sunday may also mark a watershed in advertising, with advertisers reaching out beyond TV to go into digital media in a big way.