e-commerce

U.S. apparel retailer J.Crew this morning expanded its international distribution from 29 to 107 countries, spanning an astounding 41 currencies.

That's quite a jump in a single day for the retailer, known for clothing everyone from Michelle Obama to, well, me. Businesses -- even digital ones -- just don't scale that quickly.

But there's a secret to how J.Crew did it: a partnership, and a whole lotta tech.

With a platform provided by New York-based FiftyOne, J.Crew is bringing its modern prep style to Asia, Australia, Europe, Middle East and South America. That … Read more

Can e-readers help independent writers and publishers? Amazon thinks so. The e-commerce giant announced today that not only did it top 100,000 titles in its Kindle Lending Library but also that more Amazon customers are reading independently published books.

"After a year of marketing 'Whispers from the Ashes' in book clubs, genealogical magazines, and local newspapers with steady, but slow results, I joined the KDP Select program," author Patricia Hester said in a statement. "The results have been absolutely amazing - I have now accomplished every author's dreams: worldwide interest, fan enthusiasm, and wonderful sales.&… Read more

Despite retailer GameStop's initial enthusiasm about opening a storefront in Facebook, it looks like it's Game Over for the effort--and perhaps for such Facebook stores in general.

Bloomberg published a story this week that chronicles the closings, during the past year, of Facebook stores opened by GameStop, the Gap, Nordstrom, and others.

When GameStop cut the virtual ribbon on its Facebook storefront last April, the company's vice president of e-commerce seemed to think the move was a no-brainer.

"Social commerce on Facebook is a natural complement to our trusted store and online networks," Kelly Mulroney … Read more

Just over a week ago, industry sources revealed that Amazon might expand its current member-based instant video plan and launch a standalone, subscription-based video streaming service, much like Netflix's.

Today, Reuters reports that Amazon has moved one step closer toward launching this service and is on the verge of announcing a Web video deal with Viacom. The deal could be revealed this week, according to Reuters.

If the deal goes through, the partnership could stiffen competition with Netflix, which is being hit from all sides. Just this week, news broke that HBO is investing $10 million in Australia's Quickflix, … Read more

Amazon's fourth quarter sales missed projections, but earnings were ahead. The big wild card was Kindle device sales, which tripled over the holidays.

The e-commerce giant reported earnings of $177 million in the fourth quarter, or 38 cents a share, on revenue of $17.43 billion, up 35 percent from a year ago. Wall Street was expecting earnings of 17 cents a share on revenue of $18.25 billion.

Also: Amazon's Q4: The Kindle Fire effect vs. more investment

How was Wall Street so mixed up? First, the Kindle Fire went on sale and analysts weren't sure … Read more

Try going to any part of online retailer Mertado's Web site and you'll be redirected to one page with this message:

"Today, we're pleased to announce that we are continuing this journey by becoming a part of the Groupon family."

As of today, Groupon has acquired Mertado, an online social-shopping company that used Facebook as its distribution platform and sold product deals matched to users' lifestyles, such as housewares, electronics, and food.

"Our mission at Mertado has always been to expose a selection of high quality, unique, lifestyle-oriented products to consumers wherever they spend … Read more

Shoppers will be able to use PayPal in more than 2,000 brick-and-mortar stores come March.

The e-commerce payment business, owned by eBay, started a preliminary run this week in 51 Home Depot stores in the San Francisco Bay Area, according to PayPal spokesman Anuj Nayar. By the end of the year, PayPal plans to add 20 more retailers and expand nationally.

"We are excited about our partnership with The Home Depot," Nayar said. "We will continue to be focused on delivering the best possible product experience for customers and retailers as we expand with The Home … Read more

Who needs to bother with a fitting room when you can use a Kinect to model outfits?

Between pitches for mobile payments, new self-checkout machines, and virtual customer service assistants, technology rules the show floor at the 101st Annual National Retail Federation Convention and Expo in New York, taking place this week.

This year it's possible to try on a new dress -- with matching purse, belt and jewelry -- in just a few seconds using a Microsoft Kinect camera. You become a paper doll on the television monitor with FaceCake's Swivel, a virtual dressing room that will … Read more

U.S. consumers spent a total of $35.3 billion online this holiday season, hitting a record for holiday sales, ComScore said today.

The 56-day holiday shopping period from November 1 to December 26 marked a 15 percent jump in spending over last year's season. The week ending December 25 alone saw $2.8 billion in online sales, a rise of 16 percent compared with the same week last year.

And the spending spree continued on into Christmas Day.

On December 25 there was a surge in sales of digital content and subscriptions, an area that includes downloads of … Read more