If Amazon.com gets its way — and that’s still a big “if” — it will soon control 76 new domain extensions on the Internet. Most observers had expected the company to apply for .amazon and .kindle, but it seems that was just for starters: Amazon’s ambitions also include a host of generic terms, including the …
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With the announcement of Amazon’s new Cloud Player iPhone app, the Universal Music Catalog is one step closer. For years I have dreamed of this Star Trek-like device, where I can find any song I want and listen to it, from anywhere. Preferably this will be an app on a device I already own (smartphone), …
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At first I thought it was a joke – a graduate student with too much time on their hands. But there were TWO new copies for sale, each offered for well over a million dollars. And the two sellers seemed not only legit, but fairly big time (over 8,000 and 125,000 ratings in the last year …
Continue reading “An explanation for the multi-million dollar books on Amazon – algorithmic pricing”
Microsoft and Barnes & Noble have teamed up to compete against Apple and Amazon in the eBooks business. The new partnership sees Microsoft investing $300 million in a new Barnes & Noble subsidiary. The $300 million investment in the Nook subsidiary of Barnes & Noble gives Microsoft about 17.6 percent ownership of this business unit. …
Amazon.com added 9,400 employees to its payroll in the quarter ended March 31. That’s the biggest single quarter of headcount growth in Amazon’s history. The company now employs 65,600 full- and part-time workers worldwide. With its current trajectory, Amazon is rapidly approaching Microsoft in size. Microsoft employs more than 93,000 but hasn’t been growing as …
Continue reading “Amazon has more than tripled it’s workforce since the recession began (and ended)”
There is a booming market for apps that allow you to read while offline. The two most popular of these apps, Instapaper and Pocket, let you save an article for later like on an airplane or in your underground nuclear bunker. Now, Amazon is entering the game by offering the same service for the Kindle. …
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The current explosion in cloud computing offered by major IT companies is driving significant new demand for dirty energy like coal and nuclear power, according to a new report from Greenpeace International. The report, “How Clean is Your Cloud?” shows a growing split within the tech industry between companies that are taking steps to power …
Continue reading “Apple, Amazon, & Microsoft build data centers around dirty energy”
Amazon continues to upset the publishing industry, this time going around publishers to offer authors $20 million for going audio. If an author is willing to let Audible, the Amazon-owned audiobook powerhouse, sell their book then Amazon will give them $1 per book: The Amazon-owned digital audiobooks site Audible.com is launching a new program, “Audible …
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28% of Americans age 18 and older own at least one specialized device for e-book reading – either a tablet or an e-book reader. The holiday season saw a huge boost in ownership for both e-readers and tablets. Both jumped 9%, meaning that nearly one in ten Americans received a device over the holidays. The …
The number 2 grocery chain in South Korea, Home Plus, is looking to improve sales through innovation. They have created a virtual store offering “500 items including food, electronics, office supplies and toiletries.” The store is at an underground subway station in Seolleung, located in the south of Seoul, South Korea, a city of 10 …
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