Posted Jun 29th 2009 1:00PM by Daleela Farina
Filed under: Products and services, Launches, Consumer experience, Google (GOOG), Microsoft (MSFT), Apple Inc (AAPL), Amazon.com (AMZN), Netflix, Inc. (NFLX), Palm Inc (PALM), iPhone, Smartphones, Stocks to Buy
Normally we think of revolutionary products created by start-ups or entrepreneurial minds just out of college, but the most talked about new projects of 2009 are being produced by some of the best known companies in the world.
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN): With its massive online presence and a truly efficient business model, Amazon has become the largest online retailer in the world. It is now taking on a new business, web services, namely cloud computing (learn more HERE), called the Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2). While hosting this infrastructure and presenting e-commerce with a reasonably affordable alternative with no up-front costs, Amazon has taken an early lead in this space, with some believing its cloud computing business will one day overtake retailing. "Amazon will be like a book store that sells cocaine out the back door. Books will be just a front to sell storage and cloud computing." says Larry Dignan, Editor in Chief of ZDNet and Editorial Director of ZDNet sister site TechRepublic.
Continue reading Five blue-chip stocks with revolutionary new products
Posted Jun 29th 2009 10:40AM by Brian White
Filed under: Launches, Wal-Mart (WMT)
Retailing behemoth Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) won't be aggressively rolling in health clinics into its retail stores in 2009, as it has scaled back its plan to 31 locations with clinics from the original estimate of about 400 stores in 2009. Wal-Mart even had as many as 77 locations with in-store clinics in 2008, so it has drastically rolled back its plans here. What happened?
The recession happened, that's what. The gap from the original 77 clinics to the present 33 occurred when venture capital-funded clinics had their funds dry up amid the credit crunch of late 2008 and they haven't returned yet. Although Wal-Mart sees health clinics as a still-untapped opportunity in its stores, they won't be coming to every possible Wal-Mart location any time soon. Indeed, former CEO Lee Scott said that it would take five to seven years to get 2,000 clinics inside Wal-Mart locations. Wonder where that estimate is now?
Continue reading Wal-Mart updates scaled-back plans for in-store health clinics
Posted Jun 8th 2009 3:20PM by Brian White
Filed under: Products and services, Launches, Wal-Mart (WMT)
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:
WMT) is taking a larger stab with its apparel lines than in the past and has joined up with teen sensation Miley Cyrus for a new value-priced clothing line --
naturally. Cyrus, star of Disney's Hannah Montana, has hooked up with designer Max Azria for the new line.
The new junior clothing selection will include girls' tops, pants, t-shirts and shows -- all priced at under $20. Wal-Mart shoppers will see the new items in all Wal-Mart stores and at www.walmart.com sometime in August. If history holds, those same clothes will be falling apart from a few washing cycles sometime in December. Sorry, couldn't resist there. Quite a few relatives have told me about clothes from Wal-Mart literally falling apart after three months or so.
Continue reading Wal-Mart, Miley Cyrus join forces for clothing line
Posted Apr 6th 2009 3:20PM by Connie Madon
Filed under: Good news, Launches, Personal finance
Three years ago the Swiss supermarket chain Migros started an in-store bank. We're not talking just installing ATM machines operated by a large banking conglomerate. These were actual full-service bank branches located right down the aisle from the meat and deli counters. All under the supermarket's own brand: Migros Bank. . . . What were they thinking, right?
Well, here's the thing: Migros has been a smashing success. How is that possible? Here's a tiny bank in a supermarket. Its primary role is to service store customers. The bank does not pay top bankers any bonuses. Nor does it engage in high-risk international investments.
Instead, it has a simple (some people might call it outmoded) business model. It collects deposits from customers and then turns them into low-risk loans. With this approach, Migros deposits surged SFr 2.6 billion to SFr 24 billion, even as customers, worried about fallout from the financial crisis, were pulling their money out of leading Swiss banks like UBS AG (NYSE: UBS).
Continue reading Why is the small Migros Bank growing so fast?
Posted Apr 6th 2009 1:30PM by Bruce Watson
Filed under: Launches, Marketing and advertising, Technology
On Sunday, the latest edition of Nintendo's (OTC: NTDOY) DS portable gaming system hit stores. In the aftermath of the release, questions are emerging about where the company is heading and what its platform will ultimately become.
There is little question that the DSi will be a big hit. One of the harsher reviewers, The LA Times' Pete Metzger, criticized the matte finish and stated that the machine's advances were "evolutionary," but not a must-have. Even so, he gave it a strong A-.
This attitude was echoed by another tough reviewer, The Globe and Mail's Chad Sapieha, who questioned whether the DSi was really worth the extra money, but seemed confident that the gaming system would be a resounding success.
Continue reading Nintendo DSi: Revolutionary or evolutionary?
Posted Mar 25th 2009 2:40PM by Brian White
Filed under: Products and services, Launches, Competitive strategy, Dell (DELL)
Dell, Inc. (NASDAQ:
DELL) is tired as hell, and isn't going to take it any more. Well, something like that. After having been battered in the consumer and retail PC market for well over a few years now, the commodity company has unleashed a whole slew of corporate server products and services aimed at taking on the services consulting leader,
IBM Corp. (NYSE:
IBM) and the largest computer company in the world that has set its sights on IBM as well,
Hewlett-Packard Corp. (NYSE:
HPQ).
Continue reading Dell launches product assult on HP, IBM
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