Recent Online Sales Show Shoppers Beating Black Friday Rush

Photo source: IBM

Another Black Friday has gone by as the defacto start to the 2013 shopping season in the United States. Still predominately a US moment of consumerism, the day has taken advantage of a period after their Thanksgiving Day holiday. With Black Friday, the mood changes from that of family togetherness. Buying gifts for others for holidays, the shopping season is also a period where consumers are encouraged in indulge. Low prices on desirable goods insures consumers have an extra incentive to part with their cash or credit.   

While the majority of Black Friday crowds were well-maintained for the most part, there were more than enough references to shoppers behaving badly. Either the fierce determination to buy a super cheap door-crasher or simply the stress of the densely populated shopping centres and stores has resulted in some situations where many US shoppers want to seek some kind of sanctuary. Free of crowds and guilt of leaving early for a shopping centre, online buying has become an attractive, less stressful way to endure Black Friday.

In recent years, the Monday following the US thanksgiving had been named the prime shopping time for online deals. Called Cyber Monday, new data published by IBM Digital Analytics Benchmark has determined online retail benefitted from both Black Friday as well as Thanksgiving Day itself. According to the IBM report, shopping online during Black Friday showed a sizable 18.9 percent compared to the previous year. The Average order amount had also showed a modest 2.2 percent increase over 2012 at $135.27. More impressive growth was shown on Thanksgiving Day 2013 equating to 19.7 percent.

The IBM report of online shopping has also detected a big increase with purchases made on mobile devices. On Black Friday 2013, smartphones were part of 24.9 percent of online buying traffic. Sales made on smartphones average in value of $115.63 on Black Friday. Signifying an increase of more than 10 percent with smartphone buying, the report showed double growth in the use of tablets for online shopping. Purchases on tablets were also shown to, on average, exceed those made on smartphones by $20. Also measured was the two dominant mobile platforms iOS and Android operating system. Accounting for 18.1 percent of all online sales according to IBM, the iOS user's transaction was measured at $127.92. Android device users only accounted for 3.5 percent of online orders averaging at $105.20.

Despite easy accessibility to brick-and-mortar stores, online shopping was highly favoured in major cities. New York City proved the most popular locale for Black Friday activity online.





Photo source: IBM



Hammacher Schlemmer Spotlight: Golf Cart Hovercraft Hits the Fairway

Photo Credit: Hammacher Schlemmer

Earlier this year, an unusual sight on golf course attracted viral video recognition online. Presenting an unconventional method of transport on a golf course, a golf cart hovercraft was introduced to the world. Developed for 2012 Masters winner Bubba Watson and for his sponsor Oakley, a Neoteric Hovercraft was modified as the ultimate replacement to the traditional wheeled golf cart. On a cushion of air, the craft glided over water and sand traps with Watson riding on board.

Based on the opaque nature of the Internet, many people initially believed the golf cart hovercraft was some hoax. While online portals are full of videos exhibiting trickery, the air-lifted vehicle on the golf course was in fact a real. A real video and vehicle, the creation of the golf cart hovercraft was admittedly a publicity ploy by Oakley. Beyond the viral marketing campaign, the unique hovercraft actually began to attract real interest from customers. Providing an easy avenue for those wanting the experience what could be the new era in golf carts, Hammacher Schlemmer has recently added to unique hovercraft to their catalogue.

Built with a fiberglass and urethane foam composite hull, the 13-foot long Golf Cart Hovercraft accommodates four occupants as well as two golf bags. The Golf Cart Hovercraft is propelled by a nine-blade fan driven off a 65-horsepower Hirth engine. A roof and lighting is equipped on the vehicle placing it's basic features on equal footing to conventional carts. Designed for the golf course, the Golf Cart Hovercraft meets the water standards set by the United States Coast Guard. A trailer is also included with the hovercraft.

Hammacher Schlemmer has placed a $58,000 on the Golf Cart Hovercraft.

SEIKI Reveals New 39-Inch Ultra Affordable 4K Ultra HDTV

Photo Credit: SEIKI Digital, Inc.

It took roughly a decade for North America to fully embrace high definition picture from television and other displays. Thanks to the fact that costs became approachable for the general electronics consumer, HD video is now the accepted standard. However, technology has never an entity providing people with comfort in the sense of sameness for an extended period of time. The recent breakthrough in home entertainment has been 4k Ultra HD resolution.

Delivering a picture several times greater than regular HD, 4k resolution comprises of 3840 pixels × 2160 lines. 4k resolution video is receiving an increasing amount of focus by entertainment media. The Will Smith movie "After Earth" has been an early exhibitor of 4k technology. Also, the 2013 NCCA Final Four basketball championship featured a demonstration of 4k video provided by CBS and LG Electronics. Still a new way of capturing all kinds of video, adaptation to the enhanced resolution standard has been hindered by the consumer cost of Ultra HD television sets.

The first set was introduced into the United States by LE Electronics in November of 2012. Their 84-inch Ultra HD television screen sold for an astronomical $19,999. Since an HD television of a similar size could be purchased for a fraction of that amount, early adoption of Ultra HD has been a niche market.

As many companies are trying to optimize the size of the 4k televisions to showcase the brilliance of this enhanced picture, one company could be quickly exploring products to introduce the general consumer to the concept of 4K viewing. SEIKI Digital Inc. brought a 50-inch 4K Ultra HD television screen to the United States market in April at a retail price of around $1,500. Next for the electronics supplier is a 39-inch model that could become a major game-changer for the evolution of 4K Ultra HD picture.

Premiering at the 2013 CE Week Line Shows and Exhibits in New York City, new 39-inch SEIKI 4K Ultra HD television will be first shown on June 26th. An unveiling taking place at the Metropolitan Pavilion, SEIKI's latest 4K Ultra HD television will feature all the appropriate technology for viewing videos and photos in Full HD or resolution greater than 1080p HD. A USB port allows users to plug in through flash drives to view images in up to 4K quality. An HDMI 1.4 cable will be included with the SEIKI 39-inch 4K Ultra HD television set to unleash the full potential of the display.

Besides the high performance picture created with 4K technology, the SEIKI 39-inch 4K Ultra HD television's most exceptional attribute is a low price. Priced at $699, the SEIKI 39-inch set may be more expensive than HD televisions but comes packed with the 3,840 pixels x 2,160 lines picture.

With pre-orders for the 39-inch SEIKI 4K Ultra HD television starting on June 27th, the new display will be available in online retailers as well as Sears. Sears will be SEIKI only national retailer for the 4K product.

NCAA Final Four Contributes First US Sport Event Footage Shown in 4K Ultra HD Technology

Photo Source: LG Electronics

Averaging almost 16 million television viewers, the 2013 NCAA Basketball tournament's 'Final Four' match-ups proved to be the most popular since 2005. While standard definition television were the predominant means for viewing the 2005 college basketball games, the 2013 broadcasts would have been watched on a considerably higher number of high-definition sets.

Much less expensive than 8 years ago, the HD television sets have been regularly feeding sharp pictures of movies, television series and, of course, sporting events. While many United States sport fans believed they were enjoying the game with the second-best view to actually being in attendance, LG Electronics has been testing what is touted as the next-generation of television technology.

Fed to several private viewing location in Atlanta's Georgia Dome, a first-of-its-kind demonstration of 4K resolution recording was successfully attempted at the 2013 NCAA Final Four basketball games. In cooperation with the NCAA, CBS and Turner Sports, game highlights of college basketball action was shown on LG's newest televisions in ultra high resolution. LG Electronics USA senior vice president of marketing James Fishler says, "The Final Four is the perfect place to demonstrate this next frontier in picture quality as LG continues to drive the Ultra HD market. LG touts itself as the first company to bring Ultra HD TV technology to the marketplace."

Delivering motion picture more than three times more defined than 1080p resolution, LG supplied their 84-inch class Ultra HD TV sets for the inaugural broadcast of a United States sporting event. Capturing dunks and three-point shots in 3,840 X 2,160 resolution, the LG 84-inch class Ultra HD TV's 4K picture consisting of eight million pixels gave images detailing determination of players with vivid realness. Senior vice president and general manager of sports operations of Turner Sports Matt Hong looked at the 4K broadcasting experiment as a wave of the future. "We continue to embrace innovation and look at this test of next-generation television technology as a way to potentially share fans for decades to come", said Hong.

As for when typical households can expect to see a majority of college and professional level sports through 4K technology, it might several more Final Four matches before we see in super high resolution. The $20,000 a piece price tag in the United States for LG's current 84-inch class Ultra HD TV will be the first obstacle for the new picture technology. The upcoming release of a 55-inch and 65-inch LG Ultra HD TVs should be the first step to making the screens more accessible to well-off, early adopters. The next hurdle will be to have television program providers such as CBS and Turner Sports make the move to higher-resolution video capture equipment. It may be so time before ultra high definition viewing will be ready for the pros.

Rogers Wireless Performs Pre-Emptive Reform of Roaming, Service Plans

Photo Credit: Rogers

As cellular phone and wireless device usage has blossomed to a point where much of the Canadian population are now involved with a communications plan, three national players in the wireless telecom sector (Rogers, Telus and Bell) have been the ones who brought various forms of wireless contact to Canadians. As more and more wireless customers feed off services from the three major carriers and their subsidiary brands, a call has been placed by cell phone users to have clarity when engaged with a service plan.

With several complaints filed by Canadian wireless customers, a gamut of concerns ranging from unclear billing to other pricing practices have put wireless telecom providers in the hot seat. The government agency overseeing communications in this country, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), opened public consultation on the topic of establishing more transparency towards consumers. Detailing the severity of the issue, the voices of roughly 4,100 Canadians responded by mail or online with their suggestions and input. The ultimate goal is to establish a Wireless Code that will apply to all carriers. Ahead of a CRTC hearing scheduled to start on Monday (February 11, 2013), Rogers Wireless has released details of plans the company will set in place to address much of the concerns.

For those who have taken their cell phones across the border, accessing information from the device could be handled over the communication networks of other countries. Called "roaming", the voice and data services in regions outside of Canada come at a higher cost that can quickly amount to astronomical figures. In some cases, Canadians who are along the border have been docked heavily by out-of-county roaming charges by cell phone carriers, nationwide coverage has come at a price (much more literally for some customers). As many wireless customers have been hit with roaming costs, the monthly bills have easily surged into the hundreds.

Addressing roaming charges related to data use, customers will be presented with a $7.99 pay-per use rate for the first 50 megabytes of information for a 24-hour period in the United States. Rogers indicates the 50-megabyte lot of data is enough to download 50 maps or 200 webpages. This data roaming plan will also alert the cell phone user when the 50 Megabytes (MB) data amount is approaching. This is a considerable discount when comparing current prices dictated through Rogers' online data calculator. According to the current data calculator, 200 webpages would cost $48.00 to view in International areas (though the data use quote was not accurate to 50 MB). Selling data roaming in a lot is already provided by Rogers. A 40 MB plan can be purchased at $20 providing it is used within a 24-hour span.

In this move, Rogers Wireless is reacting to the input they have received from their customers base. Other proposed alternations Rogers is willing to make includes creating simplifying rate plans and amending the time period customers have to unlock their device in order to work with another phone service. Rogers' will allow the unlocking of a handset after 90 days of a customer purchasing a wireless phone plan.

At the present time, wireless service contracts are complicated by the fact they differ between provinces. Supporting the proposed Canadian Wireless Code which currently exists in draft form ahead of the CRTC hearing, Rogers welcomes a national policy that applies from coast-to-coast. The Wireless Code undergoing possible adaptation sets up numerous mechanisms that will clearly spell out costs for service features and provide all cell phone consumers enhanced abilities to control their usage.

The changes for Rogers cell phone service has not been presented with a specific date as of yet . The wireless phone carrier does indicate the measures will be in place soon.

Arie Luyendyk Jr Turns Down "The Bachelor" for Racing Return

From May to late July of this year on ABC television, viewing audiences of the Bachelorette abroad were able to familiarize themselves with Arie Luyendyk Jr. The son to the two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Arie Luyendyk, Luyendyk Jr was determined to follow his father's footsteps to greatness at the Brickyard. Finishing 2nd overall in the Infiniti Pro Series (now known as the Firestone Indy Lights Series) in 2002, Arie Luyendyk Jr's career hit the glass ceiling separating so many drivers from the major IZOD INDYCAR Series. While he finished runner-up in the quest for love, a new sponsorship deal announced late Friday allows Luyendyk Jr to reconnect with his new love of motorsports.

Cementing racing plans for the 2013 season, Arie Luyendyk Jr has joined forces with media technology solutions company XYQ Inc. for a full 2013 auto racing calender. First, he will co-drive at the January 27th Rolex 24 of Daytona in a Michael Shank Racing sports car. After the sports car event, Luyendyk Jr will compete in the IZOD INDYCAR Series with XYQ Inc. support. "The entire business of sports and entertainment creation has evolved. Professional athletes require a new kind of digital-savvy management company – one that can oversee all points of engagement with their fans. Arie Jr. embodies the future of racing, sports and media. We could not be more excited about working with Arie." said John Marcum, CEO of XYQ, Inc.

This renewed focus on auto racing for Arie Luyendyk Jr has led to a decision relating to the ABC relationship reality show. The leading candidate to become the Bachelor where he would search for his true love from a number of contestants, Luyendyk Jr has chosen to decline any participation with the show. During his time spent on the Bachelorette, Arie Luyendyk Jr said to have rediscovered his connection to the passion of racing cars. "ultimately, I realized my heart is tied to the race track and my career is my main priority" said Luyendyk Jr. The 30 year-old Dutchman has not ruled out future involvement in broadcasts.