Articles by Gary Gately

Barnesandnoble.com stock gains fell well short of other recent Internet issues after the online bookseller's initial public offering, providing yet more evidence that Wall Street's infatuation with Net-related stocks may be cooling In the first day of trading Tuesday, shares of barnesandnoble.com (Nasdaq: BNBN) climbed 27 percent to close at $22.94...

Bypassing Wall Street, Datek Online Holdings Corp., the nation's fourth-largest Internet brokerage, has raised $300 million (US$) through private investments from investors including Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen and French luxury goods magnate Bernard Arnault Privately held Datek, based in Iselin, New Jersey, said proceeds would go toward hiring...

Child's play just got a whole lot more serious on the Net as two more big-name companies intensify their efforts to transform little Web surfers' parents into big online spenders Consolidated Stores Corp. (NYSE: CNS) weighed in with its announcement that its KB Toys division is teaming with BrainPlay.com, Inc. to form a major new e-commerce toy sit...

Looking ahead after the collapse of its merger with USA Networks, Lycos overflowed with optimism, touting record e-commerce deals, promising more big ones soon and celebrating its new position as the #1 Net portal "Business is stronger than ever, and we are poised for tremendous growth," said Bob Davis, Lycos president and CEO. "There is no questio...

Hoping to tap into the vast market for online travel booking, Yahoo! and SkyMall announced Friday separate competing sites designed to offer one-stop access to a variety of established Web travel sources. The Yahoo! Travel Specials Center targets travelers seeking last-minute bargains through huge listings of deals on airfare, hotels, cruises and rental cars...

Banking on more doctors relying on "virtual offices," e-commerce network ephysician.com is launching the first mobile Internet link that will enable physicians to tap into patient information and order lab tests and prescriptions using a handheld computer With the launch of ePhysician 1.0, 10,000 qualified health professionals will get a chance to ...

Microsoft, Inc. (Nasdaq: MSFT) got a boost in the high-stakes race to supply software for downloading music when Sony Music Entertainment selected MS Windows' digital format to sell downloadable songs on the Net Sony will become the first major music label to go with the Windows Media 4.0 format developed by Microsoft, which is struggling to catch ...

Expanding the global reach of its online auctions, Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) rolled out its popular service Thursday in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and Canada Each of the new Yahoo! Auctions -- Yahoo! UK & Ireland, Yahoo! Australia & New Zealand and Yahoo! Canada -- will be free to registered users and offer access to local...

USA Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq: USAI) said Wednesday it abandoned plans to buy Lycos, Inc. (Nasdaq: LCOS), quashing a complex merger that would have created an e-commerce powerhouse worth $22 billion In the face of vehement opposition from Lycos shareholders, the companies said they mutually agreed to call off the deal, which would have combined Lycos ...

Sporting goods company Global Sports, Inc. (Nasdaq: GSPT) said Monday it has formed Global Sports Interactive, a new unit that will operate e-commerce business for retailers with combined annual sales of $1.6 billion (US$) Global Sports said it won exclusive agreements to run e-commerce for The Athlete's Foot, Sports Chalet, MC Sports, Sports & Rec...

Deja News has dropped "news" from its name and overhauled its site in an ambitious attempt to convert newsgroup chatters to product reviewers -- and buyers At the heart of the new deja.com is the Deja Ratings section, offering detailed reviews of more than 7,200 items in 400 categories, based on surveys by the site's users.

Mass mailings, the bane of small and mid-sized businesses lacking the means to outsource, just got a whole lot simpler -- and cheaper, says an Internet start-up seeking to tap into the multi-billion-dollar annual market San Francisco, California-based Eletter, Inc. ELetter says its new online service will allow businesses to quickly and easily outs...

In a move destined to make direct e-mail pitches a whole lot more like TV commercials, RealNetworks, Inc. (Nasdaq: RNWK) is teaming with two other companies to provide streaming audio and video content in e-mails that will enable a customer to make a purchase without clicking to a Web site RealNetworks joined with @Once, a San Francisco, California...

After stumbling over a copyright challenge to the name of its "moviebuff.com" online video and DVD site, West Coast Entertainment Corp. ( OTC BB:WCEC) launched a newly named e-commerce site that will combine a vast selection of films with Hollywood news and views The site, westcoastvideo.com, offers selections from West Coast Video's retail stores ...