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Brier Dudley offers a critical look at technology and business issues affecting the Northwest.
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November 25, 2008 1:27 PM
Early holiday e-commerce numbers ugly, comScore says
Posted by Brier Dudley
The holiday retail season is just revving up, but comScore's early read isn't promising.
After analyzing the first 23 days of the November-December retail season - which apparently begins Nov. 1 - the research firm found an "unprecedented" 4 percent decline in spending versus the same period last year.
Total e-commerce sales so far this month, according to comScore (which excludes auto, travel and corporate spending), were $8.2 billion.
Gian Fulgoni, comScore's chairman, said there are "dark clouds" hanging over consumers' heads this holiday season despite the reprive from lower gas prices. From its holiday sales update today:
"With consumer confidence low and disposable income tight, the first weeks of November have been very disappointing, with online retail spending declining versus year ago. It's also likely that some budget-conscious consumers are planning to wait to buy until later in the season to take advantage of retailers' even more aggressive discounting."
I wonder if consumers are also spending less online - and more offline - because going to the stores and shopping centers is a form of entertainment for people spending less on movies and travel. (As long as the shopping centers don't feel like real-life police dramas ...)
Dec 19, 08 - 05:03 PM
Happy holidays!
Dec 18, 08 - 11:51 AM
Dish Network, in contract spat, pulls plug on KOMO
Dec 18, 08 - 12:00 AM
McCaw's video startup 1Cast upgrades, lowers sign-up gate
Dec 17, 08 - 11:32 AM
Browser attacks, cheap iPhone myth, VC gloom and more Techmeme culls
Dec 17, 08 - 12:00 AM
Ex Amazon.com chowhounds launch Foodista, a Wikipedia/IMDB for food


- Pelicans fall out of sky from Mexico to Ore.
- 11 gay bars get letters threatening ricin attacks
- In Duvall, all roads lead to deep water
- As stores close, Starbucks buys a jet
- Enumclaw-area animal-sex case investigated
- KING-TV: Seattle P-I for sale, could close
- Could Greg Knapp bring a new style for Seahawks offense?
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- Washington attorney general requests new laws
- Despite drying, cooling trend, flooding and road closures continue
- Israeli forces bisect Gaza, surround biggest city
588 - 11 gay bars get letters threatening ricin attacks
230 - Western Washington dropping football
129 - Food crisis is global warming's biggest threat, say UW, Stanford scientists
125 - The great divide
121 - Stanford game thread
93 - Seattle Post-Intelligencer for sale, could close
87 - As stores close, Starbucks buys a jet
68 - Schultz took Starbucks' new jet to Hawaii for the holidays
47 - January questions, volume two
46
- As stores close, Starbucks buys a jet
- Despite drying, cooling trend, flooding and road closures continue
- Washout: Unprecedented flooding forces evacuations, closes highways
- Divorcing husband wants kidney back
- Pelicans fall out of sky from Mexico to Ore.
- Eating certain foods together helps with nutrient absorption
- KING-TV: Seattle P-I for sale, could close
- 11 gay bars get letters threatening ricin attacks
- Finding beauty among ice at Shoreline's Kruckeberg Botanic Garden
- New Seattle phone line helps immigrant victims of domestic violence

December
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
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| 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |

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Demo of the Week: TeachStreet.com
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Gadgets and games | Fun stuff I've written about lately includes Apple's iPhone, Hewlett-Packard's HDX laptop and Microsoft's Halo3. Also on the radar are new digital video boxes such as the Tivo HD and the Vudu.

