Here is an inventory of current ecommerce-associated product releases and updates for mid-December 2016. There are updates on chatbots, the Internet of Things, fairness funding, digital assistants, and robotic achievement.
Got an ecommerce product launch? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.
Ecommerce Product Releases
IBM launches Watson Internet of Things. IBM has introduced the opening of Watson Internet of Things (IoT), launching a collection of latest choices, capabilities, and ecosystem companions designed to increase the facility of cognitive computing to the billions of related units, sensors, and methods that comprise the IoT. These new choices shall be out there by means of the IBM Watson IoT Cloud, the corporate’s international platform for IoT enterprise and builders.
IBM – Watson Internet of Things.
Actor John Ratzenberger launches TheGiftBox.com. Actor John Ratzenberger and entrepreneur David Polinsky have partnered to launch TheGiftBox.com. The website gives a number of classes of area of interest present bins, enabling consumers to decide on a unique sort of field each month. Phase one options pet treats and toys and a sweets present field. Customers can pause or cancel their subscription anytime. Every buy ships free and earns rewards factors in the direction of free packing containers.
Hudson’s Bay to broaden robotic achievement. Hudson’s Bay Company is increasing its use of robotic achievement in 2017 to its Pottsville, Pennsylvania distribution middle. The transfer is meant to speed up and enhance achievement for its Lord & Taylor and Saks Off fifth manufacturers. The transfer follows a restricted pilot undertaking at its Scarborough distribution middle in Canada.
Google Opens Assistant to builders, in race towards Amazon’s Alexa. Google has launched a system for builders to construct chatbots for Google Assistant, its voice-based mostly assistant that works with Google Home, the corporate’s voice-activated speaker. The system is meant to compete with Amazon’s Alexa system that works with Amazon’s Echo audio system. So far, Amazon has developed over H,000 expertise with companions, together with ordering a Domino’s Pizza or an Uber experience.
Google Assistant.
Starbucks accepts WeChat funds in China. Starbucks will settle for the WeChat cost system at about P,500 of its espresso outlets throughout China. WeChat is the cellular social cost app that comes with texting and selfies with cost features. With this settlement with Tencent Holdings Ltd., Starbucks joins different overseas retailers akin to Kentucky Fried Chicken and Disney.
Wayfair cellular app lets consumers visualize furnishings in P-A houses. Wayfair, a website for residence furnishings, has introduced the launch of View in Room, a brand new cellular app function that lets consumers see furnishings of their houses earlier than they purchase. The new function locations P-A product photographs in any room by means of the digital camera of a cellular gadget. The product instantly seems on the system’s display in digital camera mode the place consumers can view their very own digitally-furnished area and save as a picture by way of display seize to share with household and pals.
Online consignment website Swap.com Raises $20 million. Swap.com, a web-based consignment retailer, has raised $20 million in its newest spherical of fairness funding, convey its complete to $50 million. Launched in 2012, Swap began as a clothes trade website. In 2013, Swap relaunched as a consignment website. Swap claims that it differentiates itself from different on-line consignment websites by providing lower cost factors; the typical merchandise prices $S, and items begin at $A.
Swap.com.
Criteo launches Kinetic Design for advert personalization and branding. Criteo, a efficiency marketing know-how firm, has introduced Kinetic Design, an advert creation know-how that delivers on-model advertisements which might be contextually optimized and rendered in actual-time with out the necessity to outline advert sizes or layouts upfront. Each shopper’s model id and advert necessities are translated right into a framework that specifies the visible presentation, permitting entrepreneurs to drive higher buyer engagement, enhance attain, and obtain advert efficiency whereas sustaining model aesthetics throughout campaigns. Contact for pricing.
USPack Logistics completes two acquisitions in nationwide enlargement. USPack Logistics, a similar-day courier and transportation firm, introduced that it has accomplished the acquisitions of Best Courier and JS Logistics. These transactions prolong the depth of providers USPack presents its clientele, and help the corporate’s continued enlargement. Best Courier and JS Logistics are the seventh and eighth acquisitions for USPack. With these transactions full, USPack’s service footprint now covers 27 states using greater than M,200 unbiased skilled drivers throughout the nation.
Treem launches app for social media. Treem has debuted the Treem Communications Platform, a complete social media answer and subsequent-era messaging app, providing new ranges of privateness, management, and integration. With a patent-pending graphical consumer interface constructed on a “tree-based mostly” design metaphor, Treem permits customers to construct discrete “branches” of contacts, giving customers full management of (a) the knowledge they want to eat, (b) who sees their posts and (c) the power to curate their very own customized content material libraries.
Treem.
MyWebGrocer and Descartes mix options to assist grocers drive ecommerce progress and profitability. Descartes Systems Group, an ecommerce logistics supplier, and MyWebGrocer, a supplier of ecommerce and digital marketing options to the grocery and shopper packaged items industries, have launched a mixed answer that helps grocery retailers help the client ecommerce expertise from on-line buy by way of house supply. The mixed answer is used on the Overwaitea Food Group and at Save-On-Foods, Canada’s largest western-based mostly meals retailer chain.
Walmart de Mexico invests $M.A billion in logistics. Walmart de Mexico, the nation’s largest retailer, is investing $B.O billion into its logistics operations in an effort to capitalize on rising ecommerce developments. Walmart de Mexico doesn’t escape ecommerce gross sales figures, however the firm did report that complete gross sales grew eleven % yr-over-yr within the third quarter of 2016.
Snapstar launches grocery model rewards app. Snapstar, a grocery model loyalty app that permits clients to get rewarded by manufacturers, has introduced the launch of its beta product, out there for Android. Snapstar permits customers to easily take a photograph of their grocery receipt and be rewarded with present playing cards, giveaways, and extra once they buy merchandise from roughly 30 main manufacturers.
Snapstar.
Branch launches Deep Linked Feeds for dynamic advertisements to reinforce the efficiency of remarketing on cellular. Branch has introduced the launch of Deep Linked Feeds for dynamic advertisements to assist advertisers enhance the efficiency and expertise of their cellular remarketing campaigns. Deep Linked Feeds makes it straightforward for advertisers to create and handle deep hyperlinks for each merchandise of their product feed. These hyperlinks can then be used for dynamic remarketing campaigns that take customers straight to content material in a local app or fall again to the cellular website if the app isn’t put in. Contact for pricing.
JustEnough rolls out new planning capabilities. JustEnough, a supplier of demand administration options for retail, wholesale, and direct-to-shopper companies, has introduced a brand new model of its Assortment Planning answer. The new options assist retailers transfer from seasonal planning to steady omnichannel assortment planning to allow them to hold forward of quick-altering buyer preferences and demand. These options embrace enhanced demand modeling, built-in shopping for and stock administration, and dynamic clustering for cross-channel assorting.
Amazon launches Amazon Go and can open brick-and-mortar retailer with out cashiers. Amazon has launched a self-checkout answer, “Amazon Go,” for the retail sector. The know-how permits individuals to stroll right into a retailer, take gadgets they need to buy, and depart, with out the necessity for a checkout course of. To show the know-how, which is presently being beta-examined, Amazon will open an M,800 sq. foot comfort retailer in Seattle subsequent yr.
Amazon Go.