Articles by Clare Saliba

Although many businesses have been curbing new technology purchases, the growing demand among consumers for Internet-based support options will help propel a strong spending cycle in the market for such services, according to a report released Friday by Gartner Dataquest The Stamford, Connecticut-based research firm found that over the next two yea...

Online auction sites racked up record revenues of US$556 million in May -- a 149 percent spike from their $223 million in sales in May 2000 -- according to a report released Thursday by Nielsen//NetRatings and Harris Interactive "Auctions have grown from a niche clientele of collectors to become a mainstream vehicle for online purchases," NetRating...

Nine major European air carriers unveiled plans Tuesday to launch a new online travel service that will sell flights and related travel products to consumers The joint venture, which has been named Opodo, is backed by the consortium of Aer Lingus, Air France, Alitalia, Austrian Airlines, British Airways, Finnair, Iberia, KLM and Lufthansa....

In a bid to tap small but lucrative business markets, Amazon.com (Nasdaq: AMZN) announced Monday that it is launching a software licensing unit that it says will enable customers to save up to 20 percent off full retail pricing According to the e-tail giant, the venture will also enable business owners to reduce the expense and overhead costs assoc...

In order to steer long-term revenue growth, businesses need to begin using the Internet to move all of their company operations as close as possible to customers and suppliers, or risk being edged out of the game by competitors, according to a report released Wednesday by GartnerG2 To this end, the report -- titled "The Edge Economy: Give Up Contro...

Internet apparel and home furnishings retailer Bluefly.com (Nasdaq: BFLY) announced Tuesday that it is slashing 32 jobs, or approximately 34 percent of its workforce, in a bid to reach profitability, improve efficiency and diminish the need for additional capital The e-tailer also said it is implementing similar reductions in its marketing and oper...

Firing the latest salvo in the battle over online gambling, the state of New Jersey announced Monday that it has filed lawsuits against three offshore Internetcasinos for allegedly accepting illegal bets from New Jersey residents State Attorney General John J. Farmer, Jr. said the civil cases werefiled against Alohacasino.com, Royalclubcasino.com a...

Although price, service and convenience are prime considerations for onlinebusiness-to-business (B2B) purchasers of chemicals, the promise of a brand name is a more significant force driving buyer decisions, according to a new study releasedMonday by Accenture As part of its survey of over 200 chemicals industry executives, the research firm said 1...

The projected boom in the online population over the next few years presents e-tailers with an "enormous opportunity" to win the loyalty of a whole new crop of consumers, according to data released Thursday by IDC As a result, the Framingham, Massachusetts-based research firm advised Internet sellers to "heed the homilies of the importance of first...

Television will become an important vehicle for e-commerce transactions in the coming years, according to a study released Thursday by Jupiter Media Metrix. The research firm said that the majority of TV-driven buying will soon be transacted via interactive television (iTV) shopping programs, with viewers using remote control devices, instead of by telephone with viewers calling in to buy showcased items.

America Online (NYSE: AOL) and General Motors (NYSE: GM) announced Wednesday that they are extending a marketing and advertising alliance to push for the sale of the auto giant's cars on the Internet As part of the "multimillion dollar" agreement, the companies will continue to promote GM's full line of cars and trucks across AOL and its other inte...

Roughly 70 percent of large firms will fall prey to a handful of"significant business traps" -- including the fumbling of e-commerce opportunities -- that will hamper growth and perhaps destroy entire companies, predicted a report released Tuesday by GartnerG2, a new research service of Gartner Group At a time when the cooling economy is forcing ma...

While many e-tailers have scaled back on promotional offerings such as free shipping in recentmonths to cut costs, a study released Monday by Jupiter Media Metrix said that the return of paid shipping is driving away Web shoppers According to the survey, almost two-thirds of consumers have been deterredfrom completing online purchases because of sh...

While many e-tailers have scaled back on promotional offerings such as free shipping in recentmonths to cut costs, a study released Monday by Jupiter Media Metrix said that the return of paid shipping is driving away Web shoppers According to the survey, almost two-thirds of consumers have been deterredfrom completing online purchases because of sh...

While many e-tailers have scaled back on promotional offerings such as free shipping in recentmonths to cut costs, a study released Monday by Jupiter Media Metrix said that the return of paid shipping is driving away Web shoppers According to the survey, almost two-thirds of consumers have been deterredfrom completing online purchases because of sh...

Echoing the success U.S. online travel companies have enjoyed, data releasedThursday by Jupiter MMXI said that European travel Web sites are also seeing a surging demand for their services According to the research firm, the number of consumers visiting travelsites in Europe spiked by almost 4 million between November and April.

European e-commerce is being hampered by a combination of inflexiblepayment schemes, strict governmental mandates, and small-scale businessmodels, according to a study released Wednesday by Forrester Research "Cultural differences matter, but payment issues, regulations and domesticmarket size are the dominant reasons why consumers don't buy online...

Countering a flurry of reports that predicted sluggish returns for companies participating in e-marketplaces, a study released Monday by the AberdeenGroup found that online purchasing can provide real benefits to the business-to-business (B2B) firms that embrace it "Enterprises using e-procurement technologies are recognizing enhancedsupply chain v...

Online retailers are failing to tap into the highly lucrative gift salesmarket by wasting resources on shopping tools and services that are oflittle interest to potential buyers, according to a study releasedMonday by Forrester Research As part of its report on "The Hidden Value in Gift Sales," the Cambridge,Massachusetts-based firm concluded that ...

Priceline.com (Nasdaq: PCLN) announcedThursday that it is launching a resort getaway service that it claims will save travelers up to 40 percent off typical rates The Norwalk, Connecticut-based company said it was able to introduce the newcategory, which follows its name-your-own-price operating model, by buildinga "critical mass" of hotel properti...