April 2011
Bobsled by T-Mobile to Provide Skype Style VOIP Calling on Facebook
T-Mobile has launched Bobsled, a Facebook app that allows users to make VOIP calls to friends through Facebook chat and leave public or private Facebook voice messages.
Diesel CEO Renzo Rosso Invests In Italian Startups
VentureBeat reports that Diesel CEO Renzo Rosso is now the proud owner of a 20% stake in H-farm, an Italian startup incubator. We’ve seen celebrities turning their attention to online fashion startups, but it is rare to see fashion moguls turning their attention to online ventures in general.
The New Debeers.com Proves to be a Real Gem
Last week at their Manhattan flagship location, De Beers Diamond Jewellers celebrated the launch of their new and incredibly in-depth website, Debeers.com.
The event was intimate and insightful, as we toured through each collection, the new website and a viewing of their one-of-a-kind patented technology, the De Beers Marque.
Exclusively.In’s CEO On Where the US Targeted Site Fits Within India’s Domestic Luxury Market
Most of the focus on growth in the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) goes to China, but India is experiencing strong domestic growth of its own. Exclusively.in, the private sale site that features Indian clothing and design, recently expanded their offerings to include Asian destination vacations and travel.
With that in mind, we wondered if Exclusively.In was looking more towards the domestic Indian market for growth.
Bad Ideas: Australian Retailers Charge Shoppers For Trying Clothes On
E-commerce sales keep rising, and though online sales often represent only a portion of retailers’ sales, even longtime luxury holdouts are beginning to recognize the importance of selling online. A few are even determined not to fall asleep at the wheel again for the whole mobile commerce thing, and are putting effort into apps and mobile promotions. That’s a good idea. What’s not a good idea? Charging the shoppers who do still go into brick and mortar stores to try clothes on, like some Australian retailers are doing.
Denim JeanPants Underwear (Not Just for Nevernudes): If Everyone Jumped
The things people come up with to make men’s clothing more interesting never fails to amaze. Maybe you’ve already got your pair of SUBS garter/suspenders, but want an extra bit of assurance in case your pants sag just a little too low. Enter JeanPants underwear.
Should IMVU Credit Group Buying For Driving Virtual Good Purchases?
You already know how the group buying thing has worked out for Groupon (ridiculously well), but restaurants, spas and yoga studios aren’t the only ones who find a little bit of peer pressure beneficial in driving sales.
IMVU, the creators of a virtual world where users can buy clothes and accessories for avatars, recently tested a group buying promotion for in-game currency that brought in $112,000 in 3 days.
The SEC May Clear the Way for the Next Facebook to Find Funding On Facebook
If you have an idea for the next Facebook and are thinking of turning to crowd funding to get things started, under current Securities and Exchange Commission rules you’d actually run into lots of big problems for all those small issues of shares. It’s part of the reason platforms like Kickstarter don’t give supporters actual shares or ownership in projects. Good news though, the SEC is considering relaxing the rules around crowd funding to make actual investment less onerous for companies who’d prefer to take small amounts of funding from lots of investors (rather than large amounts of funding from individual investors).
Media’s Decline and the Looming Bankruptcy of American Apparel Animated For Your Enjoyment
It’s Friday, so if you’re looking for a bit of lighthearted news coverage to end the week, this video from Taiwanese animators NMA should do the job. In 80 seconds, you can view Netflix taking out Blockbuster, crying hipsters outside of a shuttered American Apparel where Dov Charney offers to grope for food, a visual representation of the New York Times’ payfence and other parts of “America’s Fastest Dying Industries.”