02-04-2002

Amazon Finds The Black As Netscape Sees Red

AOL, Microsoft Send in the Suits as Browser Wars Escalate

Sooner or later the Internet browser wars had to come to this: Attorneys for corporate behemoths AOL Time Warner and Microsoft are butting heads in federal court amid charges that the Bill Gates Empire has violated antitrust laws in angling for a stranglehold on the browser market. Netscape, owned by AOL Time Warner, filed suit against Microsoft in January, seeking unspecified damages and an injunction that could force Gates' company to sell an unbundled version of the Windows operating system, without the company's Explorer web browser. Netscape lawyers claim in the seven-count lawsuit that Microsoft has illegally sought to reinforce its monopoly in the browser market ˜ and trample competing browser providers such as Netscape ˜ by bundling Explorer and other Microsoft "middleware" products with the Windows package. "There is no question," said Randall J. Boe, general counsel to AOL, "that Microsoft's conduct violated the law and harmed competition and consumers." With cash reserves in excess of $35 billion, Microsoft appears able to weather a financial judgment against it. But a judgment that forces the company to restrict its bundling practices could be far more damaging. Microsoft lawyers are a busy bunch these days. They're expecting to hear in the coming weeks whether the company's antitrust settlement with the U.S. Justice Department and nine states will gain court approval. Rather than sign on to the settlement, nine other states and the District of Columbia have opted to continue pursuing the case, depositions for which begin in early February.

Pop the Bubbly: Amazon Turns a Profit

Some said it would happen sooner. Others predicted it wouldn't happen at all. But Amazon.com, the huge Internet retailer, is finally operating in the black. Buoyed by a record fourth quarter in which sales for the first time exceeded $1 billion, Amazon not only posted its first quarterly operating profit but also its first quarterly net profit in six years of existence. How did the company celebrate? By introducing Super Saver Shipping, which gives customers free shipping on orders over $99.\0

A New Wrinkle in the Domain Name Game

That Internet domain name you've long been coveting could be yours ˜ if you're on the waiting list. VeriSign, a primary registrar of the .com, .net and .org internet addresses, plans in March to begin offering interested parties the chance to snap up rights to a domain name if the current owner of the name doesn't renew those rights. Using VeriSign's Domain Names Wait Listing Service (http://www.icann-registrars.org/pdfs/verisign_wls.pdf), someone on the waiting list for a specific domain name will automatically gain rights to that name once it becomes available. While VeriSign initially plans to allow only one entity to line up for a domain name, it will consider creating longer queues if demand justifies. During a one-year test run, the wait list service will be available for .net and .com addresses only. VeriSign will charge domain name registrars $40 for the service. Those registrars then can resell the service to their customers. With domain name turnover on the rise across the Internet ˜ recent figures show a decline in the overall number of registered web sites ˜ the market for recycled Internet addresses could soon be bustling.\0

Pinpointing the Elusive "Perfect" E-Customer

Coming up with an accurate profile of the perfect e-commerce customer is no easy task. But according to Keith Regan of E-Commerce Times, Internet shoppers have a few things in common. They're often bargain-hunters for whom price is the top concern, so they're less likely to be loyal to any one e-tailer. The best type of online shopper, he says, is one who, after having a positive shopping experience at a particular web site, returns to that site as a repeat customer and also recommends it to friends.\0

Many Web Site Visitors Left Wanting More

A strong, customer-friendly web site can do wonders for a company's bottom line. Yet many business sites aren't as friendly as they could be, according to a new report from the Yankee Group (http://www.yankeegroup.com), a Cambridge, Mass., technology research and consulting firm. The report concludes that many businesses have "much to learn" about integrating the Web into their overall business strategy. "Companies must think of the web site as another opportunity to reach, serve and sell to customers," says report author and Yankee Group analyst Lisa Melsted. "Every company must evaluate its web site in terms of how effective it is in allowing customers to accomplish tasks online that both serve their interests and meet the company's goals for site visitors."\0

AOL, Microsoft Send in the Suits as Browser Wars Escalate

Sooner or later the Internet browser wars had to come to this: Attorneys for corporate behemoths AOL Time Warner and Microsoft are butting heads in federal court amid charges that the Bill Gates Empire has violated antitrust laws in angling for a stranglehold on the browser market. Netscape, owned by AOL Time Warner, filed suit against Microsoft in January, seeking unspecified damages and an injunction that could force Gates' company to sell an unbundled version of the Windows operating system, without the company's Explorer web browser. Netscape lawyers claim in the seven-count lawsuit that Microsoft has illegally sought to reinforce its monopoly in the browser market ˜ and trample competing browser providers such as Netscape ˜ by bundling Explorer and other Microsoft "middleware" products with the Windows package. "There is no question," said Randall J. Boe, general counsel to AOL, "that Microsoft's conduct violated the law and harmed competition and consumers." With cash reserves in excess of $35 billion, Microsoft appears able to weather a financial judgment against it. But a judgment that forces the company to restrict its bundling practices could be far more damaging. Microsoft lawyers are a busy bunch these days. They're expecting to hear in the coming weeks whether the company's antitrust settlement with the U.S. Justice Department and nine states will gain court approval. Rather than sign on to the settlement, nine other states and the District of Columbia have opted to continue pursuing the case, depositions for which begin in early February.

Pop the Bubbly: Amazon Turns a Profit

Some said it would happen sooner. Others predicted it wouldn't happen at all. But Amazon.com, the huge Internet retailer, is finally operating in the black. Buoyed by a record fourth quarter in which sales for the first time exceeded $1 billion, Amazon not only posted its first quarterly operating profit but also its first quarterly net profit in six years of existence. How did the company celebrate? By introducing Super Saver Shipping, which gives customers free shipping on orders over $99.\0

A New Wrinkle in the Domain Name Game

That Internet domain name you've long been coveting could be yours ˜ if you're on the waiting list. VeriSign, a primary registrar of the .com, .net and .org internet addresses, plans in March to begin offering interested parties the chance to snap up rights to a domain name if the current owner of the name doesn't renew those rights. Using VeriSign's Domain Names Wait Listing Service (http://www.icann-registrars.org/pdfs/verisign_wls.pdf), someone on the waiting list for a specific domain name will automatically gain rights to that name once it becomes available. While VeriSign initially plans to allow only one entity to line up for a domain name, it will consider creating longer queues if demand justifies. During a one-year test run, the wait list service will be available for .net and .com addresses only. VeriSign will charge domain name registrars $40 for the service. Those registrars then can resell the service to their customers. With domain name turnover on the rise across the Internet ˜ recent figures show a decline in the overall number of registered web sites ˜ the market for recycled Internet addresses could soon be bustling.\0

Pinpointing the Elusive "Perfect" E-Customer

Coming up with an accurate profile of the perfect e-commerce customer is no easy task. But according to Keith Regan of E-Commerce Times, Internet shoppers have a few things in common. They're often bargain-hunters for whom price is the top concern, so they're less likely to be loyal to any one e-tailer. The best type of online shopper, he says, is one who, after having a positive shopping experience at a particular web site, returns to that site as a repeat customer and also recommends it to friends.\0

Many Web Site Visitors Left Wanting More

A strong, customer-friendly web site can do wonders for a company's bottom line. Yet many business sites aren't as friendly as they could be, according to a new report from the Yankee Group (http://www.yankeegroup.com), a Cambridge, Mass., technology research and consulting firm. The report concludes that many businesses have "much to learn" about integrating the Web into their overall business strategy. "Companies must think of the web site as another opportunity to reach, serve and sell to customers," says report author and Yankee Group analyst Lisa Melsted. "Every company must evaluate its web site in terms of how effective it is in allowing customers to accomplish tasks online that both serve their interests and meet the company's goals for site visitors."\0