online sales

19 Stories

Online Shoppers Set Record for Black Friday

$9.12B topped 2020 mark, and Cyber Monday is expected to be bigger

(Newser) - The results are in from Black Friday, and though concern about the economy affected online shoppers, it didn't slow them down. Spending for the day hit a record $9.12 billion, Adobe Analytics found, up 2.3% over a year ago and topping the previous high of $9.03...

Amazon Is Doubling Down on Prime Day

There'll be another sale next month, the first time company has had 2 in one calendar year

(Newser) - If one Amazon Prime Day in 2022 wasn't enough for you, you're in luck: On the heels of its annual summer sale exclusively for Prime members, Amazon is hosting another one next month. The 48-hour preholiday event, called the "Prime Early Access Sale," will take place...

New Walmart Service May Poke the Amazon Prime Bear

Walmart confirms it's working on Walmart Plus to compete with Amazon's membership program

(Newser) - Walmart used to be the big cheese on the retail landscape. Then along came Amazon, and with it, its Amazon Prime membership program, giving the latter company dominance in the online sales arena. Now Walmart is making a move to put a dent in that dominance: Sources tell Recode the...

How Black Friday Really Did
How Black Friday Really Did
Nov 30, 2019 12:50 PM CST

How Black Friday Really Did

Sales should hit $9.4B by Cyber Monday

(Newser) - This year’s Black Friday was the biggest ever for online sales, as fewer people hit the stores and shoppers rang up $7.4 billion in transactions from their phones, computers, and tablets, the AP reports. That's just behind the $7.9 billion haul of last year's Cyber...

How to Lose Your Life Savings on Amazon
How to Lose Your
Life Savings on Amazon
longform
Jan 5, 2019 5:30 AM CST

How to Lose Your Life Savings on Amazon

Matt Behdjou and Mike Gazzola insist their methods are sound

(Newser) - Ever buy a plastic wine aerator on Amazon? If so, you may have done business with a couple who lost their life savings and are mad as hell—at marketers who told them Amazon-selling was a good idea, Alana Semuels writes for the Atlantic . "It's a scam,"...

Cyber Monday May Be About to Lose Its Title

'Thanksgiving has become the new Cyber Monday'

(Newser) - Cyber Monday may be in danger of losing its online sales title. The Monday after Thanksgiving is traditionally the busiest online shopping day of the year, but stores are releasing Internet deals earlier, stretching them through the week, as well as making them available in stores, the AP reports. Shoppers...

Internet Sales Tax One Step Closer

Passes Senate, but bill still has a fight looming in the House

(Newser) - Start brushing up on your Quicken, Etsy moms. The Senate has just passed a bill that would allow states to collect taxes for online purchases, USA Today reports. States with sales taxes have previously been unable to require online retailers to collect sales tax unless they had a physical presence...

Bashful? Now You Can Buy Viagra Online

Pfizer will even give you 30% off

(Newser) - Pfizer Inc., in a first for the drug industry, tells the AP that the drugmaker will begin selling its popular erectile dysfunction pill Viagra directly to patients on its website. Men still will need a prescription to buy the blue, diamond-shaped pill on viagra.com, but they no longer have...

Amazon Ditching Calif. Affiliates Over Tax Tiff

Retailer opposes new law that would require it to collect sales tax

(Newser) - California wants Amazon to collect sales tax, so Amazon is packing up its toys and ditching all its affiliates in the state. The law, part of a budget package signed yesterday by Gov. Jerry Brown, says that online retailers must collect state sales tax if they’ve got affiliates in...

Walmart Tests Online Grocery Service

People in San Jose can order on the Internet for home delivery

(Newser) - The online grocery business is small-scale right now, but the potential for growth just got a lot better: Walmart is taking a stab at it. The chain announced it is testing a "Walmart To Go" service in San Jose, California, reports Reuters . Customers can order groceries from the store...

Cyber Monday Sales Top $1B for First Time

It's the busiest day for online shopping in history

(Newser) - Americans jumped on deals and promotions offered online on Cyber Monday, spending $1 billion and making it the busiest online shopping day ever, according to new data. Research firm comScore says revenue rose 16% over a year ago to $1.03 billion on the Monday after Thanksgiving, the first one-day...

US Shoppers Await Bargains on Cyber Monday

But lines are getting blurred with Black Friday

(Newser) - More stores than ever will be offering online sales Monday even as the distinction between Black Friday and Cyber Monday blurs, reports the Christian Science Monitor . About 41% of retailers plan one-day sales on their websites, up from 33% last year. The CSM recommends this aggregator site to get a...

Cyber Monday Sees 16% Jump in Online Sales

Third-party Amazon merchants have a good weekend

(Newser) - Online retailers saw a big bump from "Cyber Monday" sales as consumers continued their Thanksgiving weekend shopping from their work computers. Internet retailers reported a 16% bump in sales over Monday a year ago, with sales at about the same level as on Black Friday. Analysts had predicted a...

Wal-Mart Takes on Amazon in Book Price War

...in bid to become biggest online retailer

(Newser) - Good news for readers, but maybe not for the publishing industry: Wal-Mart has launched an aggressive price war against Amazon. The retailer is slashing the online price of 10 big-buzz books to $9 each. The company initially cut the price to $10, then lowered it further after Amazon quickly matched...

China's eBay Thrives in Global Downturn

(Newser) - China's version of eBay is flourishing despite a crawling global economy and critics accusing the company of abetting black marketeers, the New York Times reports. Started 6 years ago, Taobao.com offers free listings, which forced eBay out of China and lured 120 million users who generate $15 billion in...

Cheap—and Good— Wine Websites

Wineries, buyers both benefit from direct sales

(Newser) - With wine sales plateauing, wineries are embracing direct, discounted sales in what amounts to a win-win situation for sellers and buyers. The Los Angeles Times singles out the top discount websites:
  • winestilsoldout.com sells one wine at a time until it’s gone. The site usually offers two or three
...

Makers of Whizzinator Plead Guilty
Makers of Whizzinator Plead Guilty
Nov 25, 2008 11:47 AM CST

Makers of Whizzinator Plead Guilty

Fake penis meant to scam drug tests could land pair in prison

(Newser) - The intrepid entrepreneurs behind the Whizzinator have pleaded guilty to two charges of conspiracy in US federal court, the BBC reports. George Wills and Robert Catalano sold the prosthetic penis, which helps customers pass drug tests by storing and heating fake urine samples, online for 3 years. They could face...

Papa John's Hits $1B in Online Pizza Sales

Pizzamaker hits milestone as Internet becomes serious doughmaker for industry

(Newser) - Papa John's passed the $1-billion mark in online pizza orders yesterday, trumpeting growth in Internet sales averaging 50% per year since it debuted the service in 2001. Domino’s and Pizza Hut join the third-place pizza-delivery chain in reporting that the Internet is giving the business new life and increasing...

Nine Inch Nails Pinch Scalpers
 Nine Inch Nails Pinch Scalpers 
May 1, 2008 7:43 AM CDT

Nine Inch Nails Pinch Scalpers

New online strategy aims to get tix straight to fans

(Newser) - Nine Inch Nails aims to outmaneuver scalpers and undercut premium ticket brokers with an online strategy during an upcoming summer concert tour, Reuters reports. Tickets will be sold directly to fans registered on the band's website beginning 72 hours before each concert date. Organizers hope tight ID restrictions will ensure...

19 Stories