E-Commerce

The news that AOL and Yahoo are planning to roll out a certified e-mail delivery service based on partner company Goodmail Systems' CertifiedEmail methodology is leading some e-mail marketers and related providers of e-commerce services to conclude that a sea-change -- largely unwelcome -- is underw...

Google has banned the German Web site of automaker BMW after it was found to have manipulated the search engine's system to influence its rankings. Google software engineer Matt Cutts disclosed in his blog that Google's so-called Webspam team had found that the pages that Google's Web crawlers saw w...

The Faustian bargains that Google, Yahoo and Microsoft felt compelled to make with the Chinese government in order to maintain access to its vaunted market are not likely to be broken on grounds they qualify as trade barriers. In recent weeks, the Internet giants have come under fire from irate user...

Now that the Earth has metaphorically become a flat, digitally formatted platform for the 'Net- and e-commerce-savvy to skate on, it's time for marketing to get circular. Basically, these are the new rules: All aspects of marketing should be delivered to customers at their destination of choice; the...

With the frenzy of the November-December holiday crush still ringing in their ears, many merchants may be tempted to schedule vacations for late January and early February. Those that do so may be missing out on the chance to cash in on what could be the second busiest holiday season of the year. Va...

After five straight earnings disclosures that exceeded analyst expectations, Google missed targets for its fourth quarter profit, sending its high-flying stock into a tailspin and raising new questions about the rate of growth in the Internet advertising sector. Both revenue -- which came in at US$1...

Over the years, Super Bowl Sunday has been the launching pad for countless products, services and companies. This year will be no exception. One of the most closely watched launches during the Big Game will come from inside the sports world, as ESPN Mobile goes live nationwide. The service, first an...

A lawsuit against eBay filed two years ago by Tiffany -- a high-end jeweler whose prices are based as much on its brand name as on quality and craftsmanship -- is moving forward and is expected to go to trial by the end of this year. The Tiffany suit joins a number of earlier legal filings against t...

Enterprises today have a number of key questions when it comes to setting up and maintaining an online presence. Some of these concerns include critical Web-related security problems; scalability; and being aware of new online challenges expected in 2006. Who better to ask about these issues than Ak...

In a move that could lead to a dramatic drop in online cigarette sales, Philip Morris said it reached an agreement with 37 state attorneys general to limit the availability of online tobacco products by shutting off distributors believed to have illegally sold the products in the past. The agreement...

Consider these two observations: First, every half century or so, advertisers accidentally tumble onto a new idea that makes the entire industry go bonkers for a decade or so -- like neon lights, gigantic high-resolution billboards or Web sites. Second, every half century or so, consumers get a brea...

Since the revelation last week that the Justice Department has subpoenaed Google for search term data, Internet users have been awakened to its profound ramifications. At some date in the future, many fear, they may be confronted with questions by the government or from law enforcement agencies abo...

As the dust settles on this latest season's holiday shopping data, there is yet one more issue to consider before this time next year: conversions. The recent release of the Top 40 Online Retail Satisfaction Index, a study produced by ForeSee Results and FGI Research, revealed that consumer satisfac...

The Walt Disney Co. will pay US$7.4 billion to buy Pixar, the groundbreaking animation studio co-founded by Apple CEO Steve Jobs. The deal is noteworthy not only for the potential future benefits entailed in an Apple-Hollywood link, but also because it immediately vaults Disney back to the top of th...

Recent research suggests that satisfaction among customers of 40 top retail Web sites dropped over the holiday season. So says the Top 40 Online Retail Satisfaction Index, a study produced by ForeSee Results and FGI Research. The Index measures the top 40 retailers by revenue and provides a comparis...