E-Business

Funerals enter the digital age and kick up an ethical storm

Is it ethical to charge people to watch a funeral using digital video conferencing?  That is the question facing stakeholders in the funeral service in Southampton.

Bebo has been boughto

Bebo, the social networking website beloved of UK school students, has been bought by AOL

Is email a broken business tool?

Both the Guardian and the Telegraph have picked up on a report from an obscure social networking consultancy claiming that email is a “broken business tool”.

Has the Google bubble burst?

What on earth is happening to Google’s share price? Google’s shares first hit the market at $85 in August 2004 and by November 2007 had risen nearly ninefold, turning Google into one of America’s most valuable companies.

But since reaching a record closing price of $741.79, the share price has plunged more than 40 percent. 

Swapping tat for quality in the retail clothing market

A fascinating article in today’s Guardian contains some really useful material for any AS or A2 Business student or for those taking the BTEC First in Retail.

Another Business that doesn’t ‘get’ the internet: Hollywood

It’s not just small businesses that don’t ‘get’ the web.. One of the world’s biggest entertainment industries, the Hollywood movie business, is way behind others in using the technology to boost its profits.  In fact, the industry often seems almost hostile to the internet – even fearful. 

There are plenty of websites that offers films for download to personal computers, iPods or other hand-held devices, or to burn to DVD. They look professional, with easy to use features, detailed descriptions of each movie, editors’ picks, customer reviews and screen stills. Even the prices are reasonable.  The catch is – they’re illegal.

The Social Network that Friends Forgot

Browsing Facebook the other night I saw a passing reference to one of the earliest social networking sites - Friends Reunited.  I remember using that site a few years ago, before it was bought by ITV for £120m and wondered what had happened to it since?

Small businesses still don’t “get” the web

I’m really surprised, and a little disappointed, by news of a recent survey from Microsoft.  It suggests that only half of the 4.3 million businesses in the UK with fewer than 10 staff have a website.  The figure is reduced to 28% when sole traders are included, according to a poll by Jupiter Research.

Is Ebay right to ban negative feedback?

Ebay’s phenonmenal success is based on many factors, one of which is trust between buyer and seller.  Until now, both buyers and sellers were allowed to leave feedback on the transactional process between two parties.  However, things are about to change, much to the annoyance of Ebay sellers.