Commerce

Online holiday spending rings up $21 billion so far

Holiday cybershoppers in the United States have opened up their wallets to the tune of $21.4 billion so far, a 14 percent gain over last year, according to ComScore.

Measuring from November 1 through December 2 -- the first 32 days of the 2012 holiday-shopping season -- ComScore found that more people are buying online. Stats showed a 9 percent rise in the number of buyers to 128.7 million.

People are also freer with their hard-earned dollars. The average online consumer has so far spent $159.90, a gain of 5 percent from last year. Specifically, the amount … Read more

Intel uses Facebook to out ultrabook Cyber Monday deals

Intel's ultrabook spec is getting some promotion on the company's Facebook page today.

Intel has taken it upon itself to promote what it believes are the top Cyber Monday deals for ultrabooks. The company's listing includes a host of products from major vendors, including Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, and Dell.

The chipmaker offered up "top picks" for its followers to check out. The first option comes from HP, which is offering a $50 discount on its Envy TouchSmart Ultrabook and a free Barnes & Noble Nook with the purchase of the computer, which starts at $749.99. … Read more

Online holiday spending to hit $43.4 billion this year

Online retailers will have good reason to make merry this holiday season.

People shopping via the Internet will spend to the tune of $43.4 billion during November and December, according to a report out today from ComScore.

That figure is a 17 percent gain over last year's online holiday spending, which itself rose 15 percent over 2010's number. It's also way ahead of the retail industry's expectation of just a 4.1 percent rise in overall consumer spending this season.

"The strength leading up to and during the holiday season-to-date, in addition to a … Read more

Lord of the Rings slots land Warner Bros. in legal adventure

The estate of J.R.R. Tolkien has embarked on a new quest -- this one in the courtroom.

The Tolkien estate and LOTR book publisher HarperCollins have sued Warner Bros. and other parties, claiming they've breached their contracted agreement to sell merchandise based on the famous book series.

Filed yesterday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, the $80 million lawsuit asserts that a prior agreement allows Warner Bros. to sell only "tangible" merchandise and not digital items, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Also tagged in the suit were Warner's New Line subsidiary and … Read more

Amazon's Bezos is Fortune's businessperson of the year

Jeff Bezos, who has run Amazon at a loss the past two quarters has been dubbed Fortune's businessperson of 2012.

Amazon's quirky CEO has worried Wall Street by spending heavily on new warehouses and employees for the holiday rush and investing in new business overseas. The spending alone wouldn't be cause for concern had the company been able to turn a profit these days.

After several years in the black, Amazon posted losses over the past two quarters. For the third quarter ended September, the retail giant lost $274 million, compared with a net profit of $63 … Read more

Apple adds Passbook-enabled gift cards to its store app

Apple is finally tapping into its own Passbook app by adding it as an option for store gift cards.

You can send someone a gift card either through the Apple Store app on your iPhone or iPad, or the Apple Store gift card Web page. In the Apple Store app, you'll need to scroll to the bottom of the home page and tap on the section for Apple Gift Cards and then choose the option to send an Apple Store Card by E-mail.

Either from the app or from the Web page, you can choose among blue, silver, or … Read more

FedEx Facebook app lets you send packages to your friends

Facebook members who use FedEx might want to check out a new app that makes it easier to send items to your friends.

Dubbed "Ship to Friends," the new Facebook app lets you handle the entire shipping process without leaving Facebook. You can ship a package to anyone. But the process is a bit quicker if you're sending something to a Facebook friend since you can select the person from your friends list.

Here's how it works:

Launch the app's Facebook page. Click on the Start shipping button. Like all Facebook apps, this one will … Read more

Amazon lockers on their way to Staples stores -- report

Staples is the latest retailer to get Amazon Lockers, a new report claims.

A Staples spokeswoman yesterday told Reuters that its stores will soon have the so-called "Amazon Lockers" at locations around the U.S. The agreement is an important one for Amazon, which is trying to get more of its lockers into stores around the U.S. Amazon has previously inked deals with 7-Eleven, among other companies, to install lockers.

Amazon Lockers launched last year as part of a strategy to offer a quasi-in-store pickup service, similar to those offered at Best Buy and Wal-Mart. After purchasing … Read more

Amazon eyes Netflix, Hulu with $7.99-per-month Prime plan

Amazon is offering a new plan to Prime customers.

After a one-month free trial, Amazon customers can now sign up for Prime for $7.99 per month. The e-commerce giant previously offered Prime subscriptions only at $79 per year. That deal, which saves folks about 20 percent compared to the month-to-month offer, is still available.

Amazon's decision to offer a month-to-month offer puts it in direct competition with its chief rivals in the online-streaming business, Hulu and Netflix. Both of those companies charge customers $7.99 per month for access to their streaming libraries.

However, in addition to streaming … Read more