| Retailers Discount Cable VOD
Retailers look to fight digital delivery of movies and TV programming, including cable video on demand, by embracing online movie download services: Best Buy is in talks to start one, Wal-mart already has one and Blockbuster (having kicked at Movielink earlier this year) aims to be in the digital download business by year-end. [AP] At least one network of smaller retailers is embracing cable, as Comcast and Home Entertainment Source, a network of specialty electronics retailers, sign deal allowing HES member dealers to sell, install and activate Comcast's cable and Internet services but not (yet) phone. [CE Pro] The Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau's rejection of the eBay online marketplace was partly based on a 2% fee per transaction that Hallmark Channel EVP of ad sales Bill Abbott called "huge...
The Human Face of Net Neutrality
When Gary Maricle retired from the broadcast business, he launched a new career selling New Mexico chili over the Internet. Selling online allowed him to compete with bigger outlets, since he couldn't afford to "build brick-and-mortar stores all over the nation." Now, Maricle is worried that the big boys might gain an edge on the virtual highway where he set up shop. That explains why he and five other Internet devotees from Albuquerque sat down with Republican Rep. Heather Wilson in late February to urge her to act on "Net neutrality," legislation that aims to block telephone companies from providing a premium service to Internet customers who pay higher fees. The one-on-one with Wilson is a scenario playing out in congressional districts across the country right now, as grass-roots advocates of the legislation try to jump-start a debate that has raged on the Web and in Washington for the past two years.
Online Home Business Ideas And Tips For DIY Organic SEO
Some DIY (do it yourself) search engine optimization (SEO) tips and ideas to make your online home business website search engine friendly resulting in higher organic search rankings. The url or domain name of your online home business is an important place for your main keyword, but more often than not those just starting an online home business are not aware of this until after they have registered their domain name and started marketing their home business, but you can always register a sub-domain name with your chosen keyword included. There are many other ways to optimize a web site for the search engines. The meta tags are part of the behind-the-scenes source code on your webpage that give information to the search engine robots enabling them to index your online home business website properly.
Business Insight
Thomas Harpointer is co-founder of AIS Media, an Atlanta-based technology firm that provides Internet solutions to businesses. He has some advice for those who buy and sell houses on the Web, where it is estimated more than 80 percent of home buyers start their searches.
Describe what potential home buyers expect from real estate sites.
They are technically more sophisticated and are raising the bar in terms of the level of functionality, interactivity and customization they expect. They're highly visual, intolerant of delays and deeply unimpressed with "typical" brochure sites. They eagerly use the Web to find information on listings, financing and to locate a reputable Realtor.
How do virtual tours affect sales?
The average online listing with a virtual tour receives 40 percent more views than listings without tours.
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