Paytm, India’s top digital wallet and payment service, has introduced a chat feature to amp up its appeal among an increasingly competitive market. The new ‘Inbox’ feature, which was first outed in August, is initially available on Android, which accounts for the bulk of Paytm’s claimed 200 million users, and not iOS. It allows users to share messages and photos like… Read More
Category: e-commerce
Alexa gets its first celeb voice with Oprah, but it’s just a holiday promo
Alexa is getting its first celebrity voice, and it’s Oprah. Before you get too excited, Oprah won’t respond to your day-to-day questions, as Alexa does – instead, the addition of Oprah’s voice is part of a holiday shopping promotion between Oprah’s O magazine and Amazon, where Oprah will help Alexa customers shop her “Favorite Things.”
O, The Oprah… Read More
Alexa gets its first celeb voice with Oprah, but it’s just a holiday promo
Alexa is getting its first celebrity voice, and it’s Oprah. Before you get too excited, Oprah won’t respond to your day-to-day questions, as Alexa does – instead, the addition of Oprah’s voice is part of a holiday shopping promotion between Oprah’s O magazine and Amazon, where Oprah will help Alexa customers shop her “Favorite Things.”
O, The Oprah… Read More
Another blockbuster quarter for Alibaba as revenue surges 61%
Alibaba’s stellar financial performance continues unabated after the Chinese e-commerce giant again beat analyst expectations thanks to impressive growth in its core business at home. The firm reported total revenue of RMB 55.1 billion ($8.3 billion), beating expectations of RMB 52.2 billion according to a Reuters poll with 61 percent growth. Net profit for the period increased by… Read More
Open source database startup MariaDB confirms $27M investment led by Alibaba
Open source database startup MariaDB has announced a new $27 million round of funding led by Alibaba, confirming the news that TechCrunch reported in September.
As we wrote then, Alibaba contributed the majority of the round, supplying €20 million of the total €22.9 million raised.
A range of existing investors added that extra bit and they were confirmed to include Intel Capital… Read More
Coin offerings using celebrity glitter may not be golden, SEC warns
A slew of media stars have hitched their stars to various virtual currencies, lending their social media outreach and luster to projects that have seemed less than golden. Now the SEC is warning celebrities that their endorsements “may be unlawful if they do not disclose the nature, source, and amount of any compensation paid, directly or indirectly, by the company in exchange for the… Read More
Amazon adds an AR shopping feature to its iOS app
Amazon today is introducing a new feature called AR View that lets customers visualize online products in their own living space, using their smartphone camera. Launched today in the Amazon app for iOS devices, AR View offers the ability to view thousands of products for the home or office – including furniture, electronics, toys, games, home décor and more – in augmented reality.… Read More
China’s JD.com leads $19M investment in Southeast Asian online fashion brand Pomelo
This year has seen unprecedented interest in Southeast Asia’s startups from Chinese tech firms, and today we can add another deal to the pile. JD.com, the close rival to Alibaba, has led a $19 million investment in Bangkok-headquartered online fashion brand Pomelo. The deal, which is the largest Series B for a Thai startup to date, is co-led by Indonesia’s Provident Capital… Read More
Target store staff can now create online orders for customers when local merchandise is unavailable
Amazon and Walmart aren’t the only major U.S. retailers looking to better merge online with brick-and-mortar operations. Today, Target announced a new app called “myCheckout” for its store staff that will allow them to process online transactions on the customer’s behalf, including taking payments, right from the store’s floor when merchandise is unavailable… Read More
Amazon Echo, Echo Plus and Echo Dot are now shipping in India
Earlier this month, Amazon promised it would bring its Echo line of smart speakers to the competitive e-commerce battleground of India. The devices, including the Echo, Echo Plus, and Echo Dot, were initially available through an invite-only prog…
View More Amazon Echo, Echo Plus and Echo Dot are now shipping in IndiaAmazon Echo, Echo Plus and Echo Dot are now shipping in India
Earlier this month, Amazon promised it would bring its Echo line of smart speakers to the competitive e-commerce battleground of India. The devices, including the Echo, Echo Plus, and Echo Dot, were initially available through an invite-only prog…
View More Amazon Echo, Echo Plus and Echo Dot are now shipping in India