Best printers for Home

Best Mixer Grinder

Best wired Earphones

Best 43 Inch TV in India

Best Wi Fi Routers

Best Home Theatre in India

Smart Watch under 5000

Best Laptops for Education

Best Laptop for Students

With <keyword id="19899402" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="digital" source="keywords">digital</keyword> adoption fast gaining currency, <keyword id="19895063" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="India" source="keywords">India</keyword> is likely to see <keyword id="19992513" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="retail" source="keywords">retail</keyword> <keyword id="19989657" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="digital-payments" source="keywords">digital payments</keyword> double to USD 7 trillion by 2030 from current levels, a study by Kearney and <keyword id="19942875" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon-Pay" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Amazon Pay" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Amazon Pay">Amazon Pay</keyword> said. In the report 'How Urban India Pays', Kearney-Amazon Pay said strong adoption of digital payments in <keyword id="21056201" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="online-purchases" source="keywords">online purchases</keyword> has potentially led to a permanent shift in consumer behaviours, fuelling offline adoption as well. While 90 per cent of the respondents of the survey preferred digital payments when making online purchases, affluent consumers lead the way with the highest Degree of Digital Payment Usage (DDPU), tending to use various modes of digital payment for 80 per cent of their transactions. "<keyword id="19955338" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="millennials" source="keywords">Millennials</keyword> and Gen X are leading in the adoption of all types of digital payment instruments," it said. "Men and women both use digital payments in about 72 per cent of their transactions, indicating gender parity." The research was based on an online survey of over 6,000 consumers along with more than 1,000 merchants through offline and online methods across 120 cities with representation from various regions, income groups, city categories, age brackets and genders. India has seen a surge in <keyword id="19990771" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="e-commerce" source="keywords">e-commerce</keyword>, with the market valued at USD 75 billion to USD 80 billion in 2022 and expected to grow at a 21 per cent CAGR until 2030. "In line with India's digital journey, retail digital payments have grown dramatically over the past five years - from USD 300 billion in FY18 to USD 3.6 trillion in FY24. By FY30, they are likely to double to USD 7 trillion," the report said. The Unified Payments Interface (<keyword id="19900911" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="UPI" source="keywords">UPI</keyword>) has been a key driver of this growth, demonstrating a CAGR of 138 per cent in its volumes during FY18-24. Other instruments such as cards and digital wallets are also gaining in popularity, contributing 10 per cent of digital transaction value today. "With such dynamic developments, it is no wonder that India is a global frontrunner in the digital payment landscape, accounting for a stellar 46 per cent of the global digital transaction volumes in 2022," it said. Digital payments have penetrated small towns, with respondents in these areas highlighting that 65 per cent of their transactions are digital, while respondents in larger cities cited this ratio to be 75 per cent. "There is a strong correlation between a city's average DDPU and its retail potential, as measured by the Kearney India Retail Index, with the top six metros displaying both high DDPU and high retail potential," the report said. DDPU surpasses retail potential in some cities such as Lucknow, Patna, Bhopal, Jaipur, Bhubaneswar, Indore, Ahmedabad and Pune, which have a high DDPU nearly matching that of larger metropolitan cities despite having a lower retail potential than the top six metros. The report said co-branded credit cards are gaining momentum. "Emerging methods such as buy now, pay later (BNPL), wearable payments and voice assistant-based payments are also starting to make inroads." Digital modes of payment constitute around 69 per cent of the total transaction volumes for the Indian merchants that were surveyed. Even street vendors such as paan shops, fruit and flower sellers, food stalls, and kirana stores are joining the digital payment brigade. "Challenges for merchant adoption mirror consumer concerns, emphasizing issues of financial fraud, limited connectivity and trust," it said. The report said the next wave of growth in digital payments will be fueled by increasing penetration in segments with lower DDPU, such as consumers in lower-income groups and smaller towns, along with enhancing the value of spending via digital modes of payment in the higher DDPU segments by addressing their concerns. "All key stakeholders across the digital payments' ecosystem, including payment providers, the government, and value-added services players, will need to play a part in expanding digital payment adoption," it said. The focus areas should be empowering communities with financial education by launching target programmes to boost awareness of digital payments and new methods such as UPI Lite and UPI Lite X, especially for aspiring consumer segments, women in small towns, and street commerce merchants, to encourage higher adoption. Also, there is a need to create user-friendly consumer journeys by streamlining documentation and know-your-customer (<keyword id="19910870" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="kyc" source="keywords">KYC</keyword>) processes, optimising user interfaces, and establishing responsive customer complaint resolution mechanisms, it said adding also there is a need to enhance digital infrastructure by addressing systems and network issues and exploring innovations such as UPI Lite X for areas with limited internet. Also, the risk of fraud has to be minimised and access to credit-based payment methods expanded by using alternate data for underwriting risk, developing innovative credit products and promoting credit education for financial health. "These areas can help India overcome challenges in the digital payment ecosystem by fostering a more inclusive, secure, and user-friendly environment, thereby enhancing the adoption of digital payments among consumers and merchants in India," it added.

India to see retail digital payments to double to USD 7 tn by 2030: Report

Chilimbi is a vice president and distinguished scientist at Amazon, where he leads the Stores Foundational AI organization. His latest focus is on building specialized foundation models for shopping and e-commerce. As part of this effort, Chilimbi led a team of Amazon scientists behind Rufus, Amazon's new generative-AI-powered shopping assistant. Before joining Amazon in 2017, Chilimbi was a researcher at Microsoft. His <a target="_blank" class="waffle-rich-text-link" href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=DrNeo_0AAAAJ&amp;hl=en">prior research</a> focused on scaling deep learning training systems and vision-language pertaining.See Business Insider's full<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://businessinsider.com/ai-power-list-2024"> AI Power List</a>

Trishul Chilimbi is building special AI models for shopping and e-commerce

<ul class="summary-list"><li>TikTok just hosted its first summit for its US e-commerce partners.</li><li>The company spent much of the event pushing TikTok Shop partners to test out live selling.</li></ul>TikTok is gearing up for the holiday season on its e-commerce platform <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-sell-on-tiktok-shop">TikTok Shop.</a>A couple of weeks ago, around the first anniversary of the product's US launch, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-is-betting-its-future-on-e-commerce-should-it-2024-7">TikTok</a> gathered roughly 300 Shop partners across 200 agencies in a hotel near its Culver City office for its first invite-only partner summit.The group attended panels, participated in feedback sessions with <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-bytedance-salaries-jobs-careers-data-product-engineering">TikTok staffers</a>, and shared ideas on influencer affiliate marketing and paid and earned media tactics. But live selling was the clear focus of the event, five partners who attended told Business Insider. Across sessions, TikTok staffers and agency partners talked about how to find studio space for livestreams, as well as what was needed to build up a live selling operation."Probably 60% to 70% of the discussion was around livestream," said Jake Bjorseth, founder of the marketing firm Trndsttrs, who attended the summit.A second partner who attended the event described its content as "live, live, live." This person, as well as several others, were granted anonymity to protect their business relationships with TikTok. Their identities are known to BI.Why was TikTok so focused on <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-shopping-livestream-career-change-income-essay-2023-12">livestreams</a> at its first US Shop partner summit?Well, for one, TikTok has had a string of blockbuster live-selling events in the US and UK this year, during which companies like beauty brand P.Louise and Stormi Steele's Canvas Beauty sold more than $1 million in goods in a single stream, according to TikTok.The invite list for the summit may have also played a role in focusing the discussion around live selling. Several of the attendees were partners who had expertise selling on TikTok's China-based sister app Douyin, which generates <a target="_blank" href="https://affiliate.insider.com?h=e54b484532789f314b635c6d0830451432638ce3089beed16d5b0b23d8dfe87c&amp;postID=66fd4dc9d8616474985bae44&amp;postSlug=tiktok-shop-us-partner-summit-live-shopping-and-douyin-ruled-2024-10&amp;site=bi&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theinformation.com%2Farticles%2Ftiktok-parent-bytedances-e-commerce-volume-surged-in-2022-internal-data-show">hundreds of billions</a> in sales each year, primarily through influencer livestreams. These partners offered advice on what's worked well for social shopping in Asia, and discussed potential cross-border partnership opportunities, three Shop partners in attendance told BI.A TikTok spokesperson declined to comment for this story.<h2 id="edfdcf23-8819-4c48-80e0-5a19879826a2">What works on Douyin won't necessarily take off on TikTok Shop</h2>Strategies that are successful on Douyin often <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/whats-next-for-tiktok-look-at-china-douyin-2022-1">end up on TikTok next</a>, and the two companies, which operate independently under parent company ByteDance, have been sharing ideas a lot lately.Last month, Douyin and ByteDance invited TikTok Shop partners to visit the Chinese cities Shanghai and Hangzhou to meet regional social-commerce partners and see the studios they use to film shopping content. Digital ad firm adQuadrant was among a handful of companies selected for the visit, according to its CEO Warren Jolly, who spoke at TikTok's US partner summit.Of course, live-selling tactics on Douyin won't necessarily translate well to TikTok in the US. Social shopping has been sluggish to take off in North America compared to Asia, as <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/startups-bringing-social-shopping-into-mainstream-in-the-us-2023-11">bringing consumer shopping behaviors</a> across borders can be difficult."If you've lived in China, you're Chinese origin, you've built this business over the last seven years focused on live shopping and social commerce," Jolly said. But that expertise selling in China may not help US sellers facing a much different e-commerce reality, he added. "Yes, live shopping is important. We understand that it's going to become pervasive in the Western world and the US market. But it's not going to be at the same modality of what's happening in China."Other TikTok Shop partners who spoke with BI agreed that the emphasis on livestreams and comparisons to the Asian market at the event weren't particularly useful when a lot of their TikTok Shop sales currently come from influencer videos rather than livestreams."I can tell you that we walked out of that [summit] and said, 'Oh, that's a cool opportunity in livestream,' but the actual financials don't make sense for most agencies," Bjorseth said.TikTok's ability to replicate Douyin's live-shopping success in the US may be tough, even as the company has been gaining on its e-commerce competitors in <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-sell-on-tiktok-shop">sales and repeat purchases</a> in recent months. E-commerce in the US is dominated by non-social-media players like <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/top-selling-products-during-prime-day-for-amazon-influencers-2023-7">Amazon</a> and Walmart, both of which work with influencers on livestreams or affiliate programs but predominantly drive sales through other means.Still, there are some signs that livestream shopping is on the rise outside of Asia. Whatnot, a live-shopping platform in North America and Europe, said in an October report that it's crossed $2 billion in gross merchandise volume from livestream sales conducted in 2024.Ultimately, TikTok's e-commerce momentum may be abruptly cut short, however. A US divest-or-ban law passed in April could force a sale or ban of TikTok's app in the US. TikTok is currently <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-justice-department-federal-appeals-court-law-ban-expert-2024-9">challenging the law</a> in court. Several attendees said the prospect of a ban wasn't brought up at the company's TikTok Shop partner summit.

TikTok is training its e-commerce partners on what's worked in China as it doubles down on live selling

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Amazon just launched Haul, a section on the app that sells cheap stuff.</li><li>It's a move to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-has-a-plan-to-thwart-its-cheap-chinese-rivals-2024-6">fend off competition from Temu</a> and others.</li></ul>Let me just say that <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-gen-x-boomers-love-temu-2024-1">I'm not too good for Temu</a> — I think it's a guilty pleasure and have bought fun things from there. So I came to Amazon's new Temu-like offering — called Haul — with an open mind.I've gotta say, sadly: It's the Temu version of <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-temu-chinese-app-amazon-safe-legit-pinduoduo-2023-3">Temu</a>.(Not familiar with that sick burn? Calling something "Temu" has become a common insult in modern internet slang — it's the cheap imitation of the real thing. As in: "Ava Max is Temu Lady Gaga.")This week, Amazon launched <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/retail/affordable-products-amazon-20-dollars-and-under">Haul</a> as a section on its app. (It's not on the browser.) It sells ultra-cheap items shipped directly from China — all for under $20. It's <a target="_blank" href="https://affiliate.insider.com?h=2268ba6446db66ec7a8be56889c432a644f5e46182e6f46a070f5f54d761607c&amp;postID=6734fbf1c711dce4fc7bdb89&amp;postSlug=amazon-haul-temu-shein-compared-which-is-better-worse-2024-11&amp;site=bi&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theinformation.com%2Farticles%2Famazon-to-launch-temu-like-discount-section-with-direct-shipping-from-china">Amazon's attempt to compete</a> with cheap e-commerce apps like Temu, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-shein-billion-dollar-fast-fashion-company-explained-2023-7">Shein</a>, and the TikTok Shop.Like I said: It's Temu.The problem is the product selection, which isn't really differentiated from Temu — or even a lot from what Amazon already sells on its regular site. Sometimes, the prices are actually a little higher on Haul than on Amazon proper.On Haul, I found categories of stuff I've seen on Chinese e-commerce sites since the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/tech/what-is-wish-app">Wish app</a> launched during the Obama administration: makeup sponges, phone cases, workout leggings, small kitchen items, hair scrunchies, and cheap jewelry.<div type="image" title="Amazon Haul" height="1364" width="726" msid="115314175" hostid="261" sizebytes="73718"></div>There's a section for sweaters, and yes, they appear to be sweaters.There's a lot of similarity to the aesthetics of the clothing retailer Shein: oversize, slouchy sweaters modeled over tight jeans by women with long blond <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.sltrib.com/artsliving/2024/06/12/utah-curls-are-trending-we-asked/">Utah curls</a>. But Shein has far more trendy items and a much wider selection.Some of the household items on Haul aren't exciting — and are redundant with regular Amazon: A 6-pack of silicone reusable food storage lids on Haul was $3.99. There's a similar item on regular Amazon with two-day shipping for $3.97. (Because stuff on Haul is coming directly from China — and not a US warehouse — its shipping is slower, with an estimated 1-to-2-week delivery timeframe.)I recognized other familiar items, like a replacement silicone band for an Apple Watch, priced at $5.49. A few months ago, I bought a nearly identical version on Amazon for about $10. Sure, I'd be happy to save a few bucks, but the availability of a cheap Apple Watch band isn't novel or exciting.<div type="image" title="amazon haul sweaters" height="543" width="724" msid="115314181" hostid="261" sizebytes="61510"></div>I leave it up to you how you might feel about Temu. There's certainly plenty to consider when shopping there, like concerns over <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/temu-blamed-shoppers-for-buying-forced-labor-lawmakers-say-2023-6">forced labor</a> that were discussed in a congressional report last year. And there's the general issue of overconsumption. (Young people are teasing their Gen X and boomer parents for becoming "<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gen-z-roasting-boomers-gen-x-shopping-temu-victims-2024-2">Temu victims"</a>.)But having spent a fair amount of time on Temu and <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-gen-x-boomers-love-temu-2024-1">hearing directly from lots of our readers</a> about what they buy on there, something that makes it stand out is that it has all sorts of whimsical things you didn't know you needed. When you open the app, you don't see the same cheap rubber phone cord clips you see everywhere else — you find strange, new, cheap delights. In my opinion, Temu's greatest strength is its variety of new products — not just the bargain bin prices.A representative for Amazon told Business Insider that it plans to expand Haul's product selection in the coming weeks. It's in "beta" mode right now, so maybe it'll feel fresher and more interesting soon. But for now, to me, it just feels like a sort of crummy version of Temu.

Amazon's new discount section 'Haul' looks like a Temu version of Temu

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Amazon's sales of cheap items are surging, driven by faster delivery speeds, executive says.</li><li>Amazon's essential product sales are growing 50% faster than other items.</li></ul>The sales of cheaper items are surging on <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-ceo-explains-why-he-wants-fewer-managers-hate-bureaucracy-2024-11">Amazon</a>.During a recent internal all-hands meeting, Amazon's retail CEO <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/profile-of-amazons-new-retail-ceo-doug-herrington-2022-7">Doug Herrington</a> said that the everyday essentials business, which includes health, beauty, and grocery products, is "growing 50% faster than the rest of the store," according to a recording of the event obtained by Business Insider.The growth is primarily driven by faster delivery speeds because people tend to spend more and shop more frequently when orders arrive quickly, Herrington said. Over 50% of those everyday essentials are now delivered on the same or next day, he added."It has really supercharged our grocery and everyday essential business," Herrington said, referring to faster shipping speeds. "And these are especially the low-priced everyday essentials, the things that most households purchase every week."Amazon has been investing heavily to make its warehouse and logistics network more regional. The goal has been to not only speed up deliveries, but also make it less expensive for the company to offer faster delivery.<h2 id="c0dfe482-5c31-44d1-a35d-fdfab5fe3a43">No longer "CRaP"</h2>Lower costs help Amazon offer cheaper products, which often come with thinner profit margins. This is a notable shift from the company's previous strategy of curbing sales of such products. Internally, Amazon used to refer to these products as <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-wants-to-stop-selling-unprofitable-items-report-2018-12">"CRaP," or "can't realize a profit,"</a> because they were relatively expensive to ship and less profitable.Amazon's <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-andy-jassy-wooed-wall-street-overhauled-bloated-tech-giant-2024-7">record profits</a> in recent years, alongside <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-layoffs-10000-employees-grand-challenge-team-dramatic-changes-2022-11">drastic cost cuts</a> and major layoffs, are also contributing to the new approach. The change can potentially help Amazon better compete against Chinese e-commerce upstarts Temu and Shein, which are rapidly growing on the back of cheap items. Shein, for example, is expanding to sell more daily essentials, like toothpaste, skincare, and toys, Reuters reported.Amazon's spokesperson declined to comment.<h2 id="27100129-02ac-43d6-9461-8899978fdf94">'Perfect placement'</h2>During the recent all-hands meeting, Herrington said Amazon deliveries have become faster and cheaper after the company redesigned its network of warehouses to serve smaller regions. Now, Amazon has more warehouses assigned to customers close by, which allows for faster order fulfillment.As a result, Amazon has been able to reduce the "cost to serve" each order for two years in a row, while achieving the fastest delivery speeds for Prime shipments this year, Herrington added."We call that effort perfect placement," Herrington said.In October, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said the company has been "maniacal" about lowering the cost to serve in recent years. It's a real competitive advantage because now Amazon can afford to sell lower-priced items economically, he said."There's an expression that we've used a lot of times over the years that it's easy to lower prices, but it's much harder to be able to afford to lower prices," Jassy said during a call with analysts.<h2 id="c402255a-a3e2-42e8-8f7f-81912d344b85">'Real positive'</h2>During last month's analyst call, Jassy added that the growth of cheaper items is a "real positive" because it is predicated on faster delivery speeds. He said that this usually leads to growth in customer loyalty, order frequency, and purchase volume."We see the ability to unlock whole new elements of the consumer spend," Jassy said.Brian Olsavsky, Amazon's CFO, added that strong growth in everyday essentials is a positive sign of Amazon becoming a part of consumers' daily shopping habits.Evercore analyst Mark Mahaney wrote in a recent note that the shift is important for Amazon, especially since its most loyal Prime membership base is <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-prime-growth-takes-off-again-record-75-americans-use-2024-4">growing at a slower pace</a>."While the growth in those categories represents a negative mix shift in terms of margins, it increases shopper loyalty, shopping frequency and increases the basket size — important if the total Prime HH membership base in the US is maturing," Mahaney wrote.Amazon is doubling down on these efforts. Herrington said in the recent all-hands meeting that Amazon is investing in new warehouse robotics technology that can further improve packaging speed. It's also expanding its rural area network and drone delivery service, he said."The most important part is that customers are loving our faster speeds and we know they're loving it because they're shopping more," Herrington said.Do you work at Amazon? Got a tip?Contact the reporter, Eugene Kim, via the encrypted-messaging apps Signal or Telegram (<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" class="c-link">+1-650-942-3061</a><a target="_blank" rel=" nofollow">) or email (</a><a target="_blank" href="mailto:ekim@businessinsider.com">ekim@businessinsider.com</a><a target="_blank" rel=" nofollow" href="mailto:ekim@businessinsider.com">). Reach out using a non</a>work device. Check out Business Insider's <a target="_blank" rel="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/insider-guide-to-securely-sharing-whistleblower-information-about-powerful-institutions-2021-10">source guide for other t</a>ips on sharing information securely.

In leaked internal meeting, Amazon retail chief says sales of cheaper items are surging

<ul><li>Smartphone makers and e-commerce players have come under the scanner of CCI.</li><li>Smartphone makers have been accused of colluding with <keyword id="19904608" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Amazon" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Amazon">Amazon</keyword> and <keyword id="19896939" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Flipkart" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword>.</li><li><keyword id="23184977" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="exclusive-launches" source="keywords">Exclusive launches</keyword> and steep discounting are among the practices being investigated.</li></ul>The <keyword id="19895221" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Competition-Commission-of-India" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Competition Commission of India" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Competition Commission of India">Competition Commission of India</keyword> (CCI), the antitrust watchdog in the country has reportedly accused smartphone makers such as <keyword id="19901379" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Xiaomi" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Xiaomi" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Xiaomi">Xiaomi</keyword> and <keyword id="19897758" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Samsung" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Samsung" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Samsung">Samsung</keyword> of colluding with e-commerce players Amazon and Flipkart. According to a <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/india/india-accuses-samsung-xiaomi-colluding-with-amazon-flipkart-2024-09-14/">report </a>by Reuters, smartphone makers have been accused of colluding with e-commerce players to launch products on their platforms exclusively. The smartphone makers have also been accused of violating competition laws by giving preference to select sellers, prioritising listings, steeply discounting products and more. <h2>CCI submits report on Amazon and Flipkart</h2>The CCI has reportedly submitted a 1,027-page report on Amazon which has accused Samsung, Xiaomi, OnePlus, Motorola and Realme of being “involved in the practise of exclusive phone launches” and “colluding” with Amazon, breaking competition law. Similarly, the watchdog has submitted a 1,696-page report on Flipkart that has accused Samsung, Xiaomi, Lenovo, Motorola and Vivo of “colluding”. "Exclusivity in business is anathema” CCI's additional director general G.V. Siva Prasad said, as per the report. “Not only is it against free and fair competition but also against the interest of consumers," Prasad added. While the e-commerce giants Amazon and Flipkart reportedly downplayed the practice of launching “exclusive” smartphones, the practice was found to be “rampant” during the investigation. India’s e-commerce market is expected to grow from $57 billion in 2023 to over $160 billion in 2028. Smartphone maker Vivo currently has a market share of 19% in smartphone shipments, followed by Samsung and Xiaomi, which have a combined market share of over 35%. As per a recent <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/indian-smartphone-market-records-7-2-growth-in-the-first-half-of-2024-vivo-leads-the-market-in-q2/articleshow/112629172.cms">report</a> by the International Data Corporation, the shipments to online channels grew by 8% year-on-year to reach 50% in Q2 2024, up from 47% in Q2 2023. As per the report, the exclusive launches pushed customers towards these online platforms and harmed small retailers. The investigation stems from a complaint lodged by the Confederation of All India Traders (<keyword id="20143308" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="CAIT" source="keywords">CAIT</keyword>) in 2020. The traders body, which has over 80 million members had accused the smartphone makers and e-commerce players of disadvantaging offline retailers and favouring online exclusive launches. We should know more about the investigation and its impact on smartphone makers, e-commerce players and the future of exclusive launches in the coming weeks. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/ford-is-returning-to-india-expresses-intent-to-restart-its-tamil-nadu-plant-for-exports/articleshow/113317956.cms">Ford is returning to India, expresses intent to restart its Tamil Nadu plant for exports</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/webstories/western-carriers-ipo-price-band-to-risk-factors-all-you-need-to-know/slidelist/113312196.cms">Western Carriers IPO – Price band to risk factors, all you need to know</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/iphone-16-pro-is-already-cheaper-than-the-iphone-15-pro-in-india-but-you-can-get-it-for-up-to-30000-cheaper/articleshow/113220789.cms">iPhone 16 Pro is already cheaper than the iPhone 15 Pro in India, but you can get it for up to ₹30,000 cheaper</a>

Xiaomi and Samsung accused of colluding with Amazon and Flipkart

<ul class="summary-list"><li><a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-could-cut-managers-save-3-billion-analysts-2024-10">Amazon</a>'s October Prime Big Deal Days include some non-traditional holiday offers, such as chainsaws.</li><li>It shows how Amazon is expanding holiday sales — and trying to get Prime members to buy more.</li></ul>Many of the deals that Amazon is advertising for its <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/deals/amazon-prime-day">Prime Big Deal Days</a> this month aren't your typical holiday gifts.To be sure, the company describes the sales event as "epic deals ahead of the holiday season" (note the "ahead" here). But with other retailers also offering discounts at the same time, it's hard not to feel like holiday shopping is just starting earlier than usual.At Amazon, in addition to huge televisions and Apple Airpods, reduced-price items include <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.mensjournal.com/gear/best-early-camping-deals-amazon-prime-big-deal-days-2024">camping gear</a>, such as a tent and a pocket knife, chainsaws, and other seasonal tools that many people are storing in their garages as winter approaches.Many are "things that we desire, but we would not necessarily think about as holiday gifts," said Luc Wathieu, a professor of marketing at Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business. "Nobody will think about buying a chainsaw for Christmas, right?"But by holding a second annual Prime Day event on October 8 and 9 this year, Amazon can take those kinds of items, which might normally be sold at steep end-of-season discounts, and market them as early holiday deals. <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-prime-day-will-have-more-deals-than-black-friday-2015-7">Prime Day started</a> as a summertime sale, and Amazon held the event for the first time in July 2015. It added the fall version in 2022 (though Prime Day 2020 also took place in October that year due to delays from the pandemic)."Things that didn't do as well during the July Prime Day can be cleared out so that they can then start focusing on the other goods that they want to sell during the holidays," said Sky Canaves, a principal analyst who covers retail and e-commerce at Emarketer, a sister company to Business Insider.US consumer spending data and company earnings this summer suggested that <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/shoppers-spending-less-retailers-brands-cutting-prices-economy-explained-why-2024-7">shoppers are pulling back</a> on their purchases to varying degrees.While many <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/retailers-showing-squeezed-us-shoppers-have-two-very-different-realities-2024-8">low-income people</a> are focusing on food and other essentials, more affluent middle- and upper-income consumers still have money to spend on clothing, home decor, and other small luxuries. But they are being more thrifty than they were a few years ago.Amazon's Prime members tend to fit into the latter group, Wathieu said. They are willing to pay Amazon's monthly or annual fees for Prime, after all. "They're a little bit less price sensitive" than shoppers who have to delay their purchases until closer to the holidays, he said.Offering outdoor gear, yard tools, and other out-of-season products during October's event is likely one way that Amazon is trying to get Prime members to spend more, Wathieu said. "You have to see this more as a strategic move from Amazon to leverage what their capabilities are, including having swayed everyone into Prime membership that they need to leverage," he said.An Amazon spokesperson said, "Right now, we are focused on making this year's event special for our members and are excited to offer exclusive early savings this holiday season." The spokesperson did not comment directly on Amazon's strategy for sourcing the deals."We know saving is important to our Prime members, and we are excited to provide members deep discounts and millions of deals worldwide from top categories including electronics, home, toys, beauty, and apparel," and on brands like Dyson and Barbie, the spokesperson added.Other retailers are offering their own October sales this year, giving Amazon some competition. Walmart's <a target="_blank" href="https://affiliate.insider.com?h=3ac90f89af3f3fa7efd3a07998b32efb276666171ebfe5ac5ff429f13efb1424&amp;postID=66feb0730c43543ec7a7009e&amp;postSlug=amazon-october-prime-day-sale-includes-unusual-holiday-items-2024-10&amp;site=bi&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.walmart.com%2Fshop%2Fdeals">Holiday Deals</a> sale starts on October 8, the first day of Prime Day, and runs through October 13. <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://corporate.target.com/press/release/2024/09/target-circle-week-returns-oct-6-12-with-seven-days-of-deals-up-to-50-off">Target Circle Week</a> kicks off on October 6 this year.Even retailers outside the big-box sphere are participating. <a target="_blank" href="https://affiliate.insider.com?h=1b82d37e789aa76c11561a3e821ff69ce2556b4bd24977585dde8332be9d90c3&amp;postID=66feb0730c43543ec7a7009e&amp;postSlug=amazon-october-prime-day-sale-includes-unusual-holiday-items-2024-10&amp;site=bi&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.homedepot.com%2Fb%2FDecor-Days%2FN-5yc1vZ1z1zl2q">Home Depot</a> started its Décor Days sale on Thursday, marking the second year for the sale. Rival <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://corporate.lowes.com/newsroom/press-releases/lowes-launches-first-ever-mylowes-rewards-week-40-biggest-member-deals-year-09-26-24">Lowe's</a>, meanwhile, will launch MyLowe's Rewards Week, the home improvement chain's first October sale, on Thursday.But all those sales at once might be too much for shoppers. Sixty-seven percent said that they expect to "feel overwhelmed with marketing messages" from retailers about holiday sales by November 1, according to research firm Optimove Insights. The survey, conducted in July, polled 280 US shoppers over the age of 21 from households with incomes of $75,000 or more.Even devout Amazon shoppers might feel burned out on sales, with the retailer's October sale coming less than three months after <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-prime-day-us-purchases-essentials-trash-bags-numerator-consumer-2024-7">July's Prime Day</a>, Canaves said."There is a risk of holiday marketing fatigue," she said.Do you work for Amazon and have a story idea to share? Reach out to this reporter at abitter@businessinsider.com

Amazon's Prime Big Deals might surprise you this October

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Amazon won partial dismissal of an FTC lawsuit alleging illegal monopoly practices.</li><li>The FTC accused Amazon of stifling competition by coercing sellers to use its service.</li></ul>Amazon just won a partial dismissal of a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-prime-ftc-suit-how-insider-investigation-led-to-crackdown-2023-6">Federal Trade Commission lawsuit</a> that accused it of operating an illegal monopoly.In September 2023, the FTC sued <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-return-office-push-remote-work-morale-wfh-2024-9">Amazon </a>for stifling competition by punishing vendors who sell their items cheaper on rival platforms and for forcing sellers to use Amazon's own fulfillment service. The competition watchdog <a target="_blank" rel="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ftc-questions-amazon-competitors-amid-potential-antitrust-probe-2019-6">started investigating Amazon in 2019</a> over its business practices.On Monday, a federal judge in Seattle partially granted Amazon's earlier motion to dismiss the case, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/amazon-wins-partial-dismissal-us-ftcs-antitrust-lawsuit-2024-10-01/">Reuters reported</a>, citing court records. In December, the e-commerce giant asked the judge to dismiss the case. At the time, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon">Amazon</a> said its practices were standard for all retailers and the FTC had failed to identify harm to consumers.But the FTC can continue to pursue claims that the judge did not dismiss, per Reuters.The FTC and Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent outside regular business hours.The lawsuit is one of several FTC investigations into Amazon in recent years, as the federal government takes a harder line against Big Tech companies, including Amazon, Meta, Google, and Nvidia.Last year, the agency <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-prime-ftc-suit-how-insider-investigation-led-to-crackdown-2023-6">sued Amazon in another case, saying it lured unwitting customers</a> into <a target="_blank" rel="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-is-investigating-prime-team-gender-bias-allegations-2021-6">Prime</a> subscriptions and created a "labyrinthine" process to cancel it. The company "knowingly duped millions of consumers," the FTC said <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.wawd.323520/gov.uscourts.wawd.323520.1.0_1.pdf">in its complaint,</a> filed in federal court in Washington state.The FTC is also investigating the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-amazon-execs-signal-messaging-app-ftc-investigation-2024-4#:~:text=Amazon's%20top%20executives%20used,of%20its%20disappearing%20message%20feature.">company's use of Signal</a>, an encrypted messaging app, and how its executives used a disappearing messages feature that may have destroyed information relevant to the agency's investigation.<h2 id="bdd16c8e-02cf-4fa5-a144-3a91ee92bc99">Big Tech crackdown</h2>The partial dismissal comes amid <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/google-monopoly-antitrust-ruling-should-make-apple-meta-amazon-nervous-2024-8">a wave of lawsuits</a> brought on by the US government against Big Tech. Under the Biden administration, the FTC has been examining deals more closely and pushing for more <a target="_blank" rel="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-amazon-forces-customers-to-pay-more-ftc-lawsuit-2023-9">aggressive competition policies.</a>In August, a federal judge <a target="_blank" rel="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/google-violated-antitrust-law-to-keep-search-monopoly-judge-rules-2024-8">described Google as a monopoly</a> and said that Alphabet's deals to make Google the default search engine on other platforms violated competition laws while accruing billions of dollars in revenue. The Department of Justice is now mulling whether to seek a breakup of the company, <a target="_blank" rel=" nofollow" class="" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-08-13/doj-considers-seeking-google-goog-breakup-after-major-antitrust-win">Bloomberg reported</a> in August.The same month, the agency was reportedly <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nvidia-doj-investigation-runai-big-tech-crackdown-antitrust-acquisition-competition-2024-8">investigating Nvidia's acquisition</a> of an Israeli AI startup called Run:ai and how the chipmaker pressured cloud providers to buy multiple products.Earlier this year, the DOJ sued <a target="_blank" rel="" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-antitrust-lawsuit-justice-department-2024-3">Apple </a><a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-antitrust-lawsuit-justice-department-2024-3">in an antitrust lawsuit,</a> saying the company illegally maintained a smartphone monopoly by "delaying, degrading, or outright blocking" other technology in the market.In 2022, the FTC repeatedly tried to block Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, a leading video game developer. The agency said that the $69 billion deal would suppress competition in gaming.The US government has also filed similar recent <a target="_blank" rel="" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tesla-lawsuit-alleges-long-waits-service-centers-high-repair-prices-2023-3">lawsuits against Tesla</a> and <a target="_blank" rel="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ruling-ftc-meta-facebook-lawsuit-instagram-whatsapp-can-proceed-2022-1">Meta</a>.

Amazon just won a partial victory against the FTC

Softbank-backed e-commerce firm <keyword id="19911893" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Meesho" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Meesho" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Meesho">Meesho</keyword> will start its annual <keyword id="23217664" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="festival-sale" source="keywords">festival sale</keyword>, Meesho <keyword id="23217663" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mega-Blockbuster-Sale" source="keywords">Mega Blockbuster Sale</keyword>, from September 27 onwards with the highest number of sellers onboard among its competitors, the company said on Tuesday. The company has recorded about 42 per cent surge in sellers on a year-on-year basis to 20 lakh for the upcoming festival season. "Meesho's Annual 'Meesho Mega Blockbuster Sale' Starts on 27th September. With over 20 lakh sellers and 12 crore product listings across 30 categories, Meesho aims to make festive shopping more accessible, affordable, and convenient for shoppers across the country," the company said in a statement. Meesho claimed to have 14 lakh sellers onboard for Meesho Mega Blockbuster 2023. <keyword id="19910508" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon-India" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Amazon India" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Amazon India">Amazon India</keyword> has seen a 14 per cent growth in <keyword id="23217665" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="seller-base" source="keywords">seller base</keyword> but remains lower than that of Meesho for their upcoming annual festival sale "<keyword id="23217666" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="The-Great-Indian-Festival" source="keywords">The Great Indian Festival</keyword>". "Our current seller base exceeds 16 lakh sellers from all across the country," Amazon India, Director, Selling Partner Services, Amit Nanda, said. Interest of sellers for <keyword id="19896939" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Flipkart" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword> has remained muted on a year-over-year basis. While announcing annual festival sale dates "The Big Billion Days" on Monday, <keyword id="19896940" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Walmart" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Walmart" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Walmart">Walmart</keyword> group firm Flipkart had said it has over 50 crore users and more than 14 lakh sellers on the platform, including sellers of its other platform Shopsy as well. Flipkart had reported the same level of sellers onboard before the TBBD in 2023. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/amazon-great-indian-festival-sale-to-begin-on-september-27/articleshow/113445238.cms">Amazon Great Indian Festival sale to begin on September 27</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/triumph-speed-t4-launched-in-india-with-a-price-tag-of-2-17-lakh/slidelist/113429766.cms">Triumph Speed T4 launched in India with a price tag of ₹2.17 lakh</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/xiaomi-and-samsung-accused-of-colluding-with-amazon-and-flipkart/articleshow/113381204.cms">Xiaomi and Samsung accused of colluding with Amazon and Flipkart</a>

Meesho to begin annual festival sale from September  27, sees 42% surge in seller base

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/deals/black-friday-deals">holiday shopping season</a> continues to start earlier in the year, thanks largely to Amazon.</li><li>Amazon's 48-hour deals event is underway, along with competing sales by the major retailers.</li></ul>Nevermind Black Friday, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/october-becoming-new-black-friday-amazon-walmart-target-sales-2024-9">Green October is in full swing</a>.The holiday shopping season is underway earlier than ever, thanks largely to Amazon moving up its <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/deals/best-prime-day-deals-big-deal-days-2024-10">Prime Day</a> deals event.Faced with what would ordinarily be a shorter stretch of discounting (Thanksgiving and Christmas are closer together on the calendar than usual), the e-commerce juggernaut is pulling the start of the spending spree into early October.And in modern retail, many competitors look to follow what Amazon does to stay competitive.As Amazon has inched its 48-hour event earlier — from October 11 and 12 in 2022, to October 10 and 11 in 2023, and now to October 8 and 9 this year — competing promos by major retailers are also stepping up to win shoppers' dollars.Target kicked off the sequence early on Sunday with its Circle Week, while Walmart's Deals event gets underway online on Tuesday and in stores on Wednesday.The quasi-gravitational influence of all this promotional activity has even roped Costco into the mix with a Member Savings Event that started on Monday. Costco isn't typically a trend-chasing company, so it's notable that it's on the pre-holiday deals bandwagon during this particular week in October ahead of its formal start to holiday savings in November.Even if the traditional interval between Thanksgiving and Christmas was on the longer side, it would make sense for this further encroachment into pre-Halloween deals to occur.As inflation has eased off, the big lesson for retailers over the past year is that <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/americans-budget-era-value-retail-walmart-target-tj-maxx-2024-8">customers are still willing to spend</a> — if the price is right. US shoppers also splurged for celebrations and special occasions.What better way for retailers to tap into those trends than to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/history-of-amazon-prime-day-impact-on-retail-industry2023-7">invent a holiday that celebrates deals</a> and kicks off a whole season of festivities?

You Searched For "amazon ecommerce" and got 10 results

India to see retail digital payments to double to USD 7 tn by 2030: Report

PTI

Trishul Chilimbi is building special AI models for shopping and e-commerce

Eugene Kim

TikTok is training its e-commerce partners on what's worked in China as it doubles down on live selling

Dan Whateley

Amazon's new discount section 'Haul' looks like a Temu version of Temu

Katie Notopoulos

In leaked internal meeting, Amazon retail chief says sales of cheaper items are surging

Eugene Kim

Xiaomi and Samsung accused of colluding with Amazon and Flipkart

Sourabh Jain

Amazon's Prime Big Deals might surprise you this October

Alex Bitter

Amazon just won a partial victory against the FTC

Shubhangi Goel

Meesho to begin annual festival sale from September 27, sees 42% surge in seller base

PTI

Amazon's jump-start to the holiday shopping season has even roped in Costco this year

Dominick Reuter

Popular Keywords

Buying Guides