AfriGIS, a location based services company, has developed a mobile service that enables Standard Bank customers to locate the nearest Standard Bank ATM or branch from their cellphones. 13 Nov 2008
Nintendo SA is launching a new online store, enabling gaming enthusiasts to order both the latest releases as well as back-issues of their favourite Wii and DS Lite games direct from the site. 13 Nov 2008
Just two days after regional consumer electronics chain Circuit City declared bankruptcy, Best Buy has slashed its earnings forecast for the upcoming holiday season and much of 2009. 13 Nov 2008
Virtual worlds provide not only a new universe in which brave explorers stake their claims, but also a new legal landscape in which the colonists are often at odds with the natives from the "old world." How do real-world laws apply? How do traditional concepts of intellectual property - patents, copyrights, and trademarks - apply in a virtual world? Can virtual worlds contract around intellectual property rights by forcing users to license their intellectual property, or forego such claims altogether? 13 Nov 2008
Cash strapped consumers affected by the economic downturn are changing their shopping behaviour. This according to Stephen Mawby, MD of Glendinning Management Consultants, who says that retailers will have to respond to changing consumer needs as the economic climate forces shoppers to be more considered in their buying habits. 13 Nov 2008
The trend in retail sales growth is expected to remain downward for most of this year due to pressure from higher interest rates and the National Credit Act and high inflation, which continue to exert pressure on household finances. 13 Nov 2008
Retail sales dived 5% in September compared with the same month last year, marking the fifth annual fall in a row and confirming that the economy's third-biggest sector is mired in a recession. 13 Nov 2008
The World Bank on Tuesday lowered its growth forecast for the world economy to only 1% in 2009 due to the impacts of the global financial crisis. 12 Nov 2008
Retailer Mr Price Group has reported an 11% increase in diluted headline earnings per share to 86 cents for the six months ended September from 77.5 cents a year ago. 12 Nov 2008
Supermarket chain Spar Group has posted a 29.9% increase in headline earnings per share from 312.3 cents to 405.7 cents per share for the 12 months ended September. 12 Nov 2008
How 'Every Little Helps' - advertising helped Tesco's brand image in the 1990s. 12 Nov 2008
Dell, struggling to recharge its lineup of consumer product offerings, indicated Monday that a digital music player is not in the computer maker's near-term plans despite speculation that such a product is in the works. 12 Nov 2008
We like to touch and feel a new product before we buy it, but we cannot do that when offered a product via an email. So how can email marketers get around the challenge of still encouraging a sale based on an email? How can they appeal to the senses via email? 12 Nov 2008
The National Credit Act (NCA) has, to a large degree, protected consumers from the credit crunch now facing the nation. At the same time it is weeding out bad apples in the micro lending industry, in this case a micro-lender in the Northern Cape who charged up to 240% interest on short term loans. 12 Nov 2008
For years, South African bank customers have complained of high bank charges. Now it seems customers in the UK will also begin to feel the pinch - and they could end up paying for services they presently enjoy for free. 12 Nov 2008
Circuit City has filed for reorganisation relief in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in Richmond. The retailer - the second largest in the electronics goods space after Best Buy - has clearly been struggling for the last several months. In November alone, it slashed its workforce by 20% and announced plans to close 155 stores. 11 Nov 2008
Motor vehicle, food and beverage manufacturing have contributed towards the 2.5% decrease in manufacturing for the third quarter of 2008, reported Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), Tuesday, 11 November. 11 Nov 2008
Credit agencies have lost integrity in the midst of the ongoing global financial crisis and in an attempt to regain credibility, they have downgraded many emerging markets from stable to negative. 11 Nov 2008
Consumer foods group Tiger Brand expects headline earnings per share (HEPS) from continuing operations for the year ended September to reflect an improvement of between 32% and 37% compared to that achieved in the previous financial year. 11 Nov 2008
Old Mutual's closing share price was R8,48 last Thursday. On Friday, its third-quarter results showed the group's unrealised losses on its US Life business had doubled to $2,3bn. 11 Nov 2008
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