Wal-Mart

From The Economist:

The world's biggest retailer has long struggled to dominate the streaming video market against competitors like Netflix, Apple and Blockbuster. Now Wal-Mart is taking a new tack, The New York Times reports.

Sources told the Times that Wal-Mart has agreed to buy VUDU, a three-year-old company that embeds its streaming technology into high-definition TVs and Blu-Ray DVD players. Wal-Mart and VUDU began briefing movie studios and TV makers about the deal on Monday.

Control the User Experience

In a move that could invigorate weak sales of Google's Nexus One smartphone, Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, appears ready to start selling the device. According to one online report, the cost could be as low as $99 -- much lower than the subsidized $179 price from T-Mobile with a two-year plan.

If Black Friday's online shopping was any indication, consumers are increasingly buying online. According to comScore, total online shopping was up 11 percent over last year's Black Friday. Sales at two leading retailers, Amazon.com and the online site of Wal-Mart, increased 28 percent and 22 percent, respectively.

Sometimes a stock looks so enticing that investors just can't help themselves.

The market appetite is such that the stock rockets higher, leaving behind most reasonable measures of the company's worth. To commemorate this week's Thanksgiving feasts, BusinessWeek went hunting for stocks that have arguably inspired feeding frenzies over the past year.

Raul Vazquez wants to be the Grinch who steals Christmas -- for Wal-Mart, that is.

Vazquez, the CEO of Walmart.com, told BusinessWeek he expects as much as a 30 percent gain in online sales this holiday season compared with last year. That would far outpace the 8 percent to 10 percent projected rise in industrywide retail e-commerce this year. Total U.S. holiday retail sales are expected to be $438 billion, down 1 percent vs. last year, according to the National Retail Federation.

Raul Vazquez wants to be the Grinch who steals Christmas -- for Wal-Mart, that is.

Vazquez, the CEO of Walmart.com, told BusinessWeek he expects as much as a 30 percent gain in online sales this holiday season compared with last year. That would far outpace the 8 percent to 10 percent projected rise in industrywide retail e-commerce this year. Total U.S. holiday retail sales are expected to be $438 billion, down 1 percent vs. last year, according to the National Retail Federation.

Palm released its new Pixi smartphone Sunday, hoping to keep its new and well-received webOS mobile platform moving forward. The smartphone, which will be available through Sprint Nextel, comes amid rumors that Nokia is interested in buying the struggling device maker.

Taking a page from its original playbook, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. launched a full-fledged price war with Amazon.com Inc. and a nation of book retailers, lowering online prices on certain highly anticipated hardback titles to $9.

The volley of discounts, which began Thursday when the retailer listed prices for some upcoming hardcover releases such as Dean Koontz' "Breathless" and Stephen King's "Under the Dome" at $10, was answered with a similar price cut by Amazon, the largest online bookseller. Then the two competitors lowered the prices even further to $9.

Even a global recession can't come between Americans and the high-tech gadgets they love. Consumers of all ages and family situations are purchasing high-definition TVs, network gear, and smartphones at a breakneck pace, according to a study released on Sept. 2.