brick and mortar

Making the Case for E-Commerce (i.e., Amazon) in 2011

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on January 4, 2011 at 5:22 pm PT

Amazon.com is one of the top picks in e-commerce for the year, mostly because of its dominance, but also because of the opportunities it has going forward in mobile and social networks. Here’s how the two factors play a role as e-commerce revenues are expected to jump by 13 percent in 2011.

Woof: EBay Is Winning Bidder for Milo

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on December 2, 2010 at 12:46 pm PT

EBay has acquired Milo as a way to add physical retail locations into its e-commerce strategy. Milo’s database of products from 50,000 U.S. retail stores, like Best Buy, Sears and Target, will be integrated into the San Jose-based company’s search results to provide local shopping alternatives.

Barnes & Noble’s Nook Finally Limps Into Stores. Too Late?

Peter Kafka in Media on February 8, 2010 at 1:30 pm PT

Barnes & Noble’s e-reader entry was supposed to have one big advantage over the Kindle–you could buy one at the retailer’s stores. But it has been a long time coming, and in the meantime, you may have heard about another compelling e-reader heading to market.

Microsoft Store Overhauled to Encourage More Windows Shopping

John Paczkowski in News on October 22, 2009 at 6:24 am PT

Microsoft’s first brick-and-mortar retail store isn’t scheduled to open for another few hours, but the software giant is already selling PC hardware and third-party software titles–on the Web. This morning it unveiled an expanded online store that will better reflect its new real-world counterpart.

Bank of America Closing Branches You Never Went to Anyway

John Paczkowski in News on July 28, 2009 at 11:01 am PT

Remember the last time you set foot in a real brick-and-mortar bank? Me either. And we’re not the only ones. With more and more people managing their financial affairs via PC and mobile device, a bank’s retail presence no longer need be as ubiquitous as it once was. The latest institution to realize this–Bank of America, which, according to The Wall Street Journal, plans to close up to 10 percent of its 6,100 branches across the country over the next three-to-five years.

TiVo and Blockbuster Join Farces

John Paczkowski in News on March 25, 2009 at 4:50 am PT

Blockbuster says it has big plans to grow its business. But if inking a video-on-demand deal with a declining DVR pioneer is one of them… well, that’s not much of a plan, is it?

Consumer Technology Holiday Sales Predictably Lousy

John Paczkowski in News on January 13, 2009 at 11:25 am PT

Though there was no reason to expect otherwise, sales of consumer electronics in the states fell dramatically during the holiday season. While online sales rose 7.1 percent to $1.7 billion for the five weeks that ended Dec. 27, sales at brick-and-mortar stores fell 8.1 percent to $7.5 billion, according to research firm NPD Group. End result: an overall decline of 5.7 percent for what NPD analyst Stephen Baker says was “by far” the worst holiday season the firm has seen.