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Fashion is one of the most popular segments in online retail in India; however, some of the e-commerce ventures operating in this category are finding it hard to carry on with their portals, because of lack of funds from investors. 
 
These portals have been unsuccessful to raise money or find buyers, which is why they are facing a dearth of cash, opting to either close or scale back their operations. 
 For example, <keyword id="868656" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="FreeCultr">Freecultr</keyword>, the Sequoia Capital-funded e-commerce company Freecultr, has shut down its website, two people aware of the matter told ET. The company was in talks with Arvind Group for a possible sell-off, but looks like the deal couldn’t get through. 
 
However, Sandeep Singh, cofounder of Freecultr, said that the website is currently not operational because there is a "technical error". He added that, "I can't comment on shutdown." 
 
A look at the company’s social media tells us that while the Facebook page was last updated in March, the Twitter handle had its last update in April. 
 <keyword id="1149081" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Zovi">Zovi</keyword>, which was backed by SAIF Partners and Tiger Global, has also stopped selling directly via its website, forcing buyers to go to Flipkart and Amazon to buy the products. 
 
"Sorry for interruption. We are shifting our warehouses. We will be back soon. You can still continue to keep directing our products at Amazon and Flipkart," says the website error. Here as well, the authorities declined shutting down the business. 
 
"At present we are not selling directly via the portal but we are selling through our marketplace partners," Manish Chopra, CEO of Zovi said. Social media pages of Zovi have been waiting for an update since long. 
 
Even though the online fashion segment is supposed to grow to $20 billion by 2020 from the present $2 billion, it’s the smaller online fashion retailers that are struggling to keep alive. 
 
<a href="http://streetglams.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/Streetglams-onlineshopping.jpeg">Image source</a>

Fashion is a key segment in online retail, but owning a fashion portal isn’t a cakewalk

With the penetration of smartphones, online travel industry is growing rapidly. It seems all the market players want a bigger share of the travel market pie. Now India’s fastest growing mCommerce platform <keyword id="6357120" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="PayTM">Paytm</keyword> is also planning to launch a travel marketplace on the lines of Chinese eCommerce company Alibaba’s travel marketplace Alitrip. 
 An Economic Times report revealed that Noida-based Paytm has roped in Satish Mani, co-founder and chief technology officer of online fashion retailer <keyword id="1149081" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Zovi">Zovi</keyword>, to develop the marketplace business. , And for this, Paytm is in advanced talks with the <keyword id="163405" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Alibaba-Group">Alibaba Group</keyword> to raise $600 million. 
 
Vijay Shekhar Sharma, co-founder &amp; CEO of Paytm, told ET, "Our approach is to build an Alitrip kind of business in India.” 
 
The company wants to enter newer categories to grow its gross merchandise value, or the total amount of goods sold on the platform, to $3-4 billion (up to Rs 25,600 crore) by the end of 2015, from its current run rate of $1.5 billion (Rs 9,600 crore). 
 
"We are building a digital commerce business of new categories to counter scale of physical commerce and logistics," said Sharma told the financial daily. Paytm plans to start signing up hotels and travel agents on the platform from next month. 
 According to <keyword id="152443" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Internet-Mobile-Association-of-India">Internet &amp; Mobile Association of India</keyword>, the country’s online travel market was estimated to be worth over $8 billion (Rs 51,200 crore) in 2014. 
(Image: Thinkstock)

Paytm to enters the fast-growing travel marketplace?

Hyper local deal discovery app <keyword id="117672" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="little">Little</keyword> has managed to get <keyword id="6357120" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="PayTM">Paytm</keyword> co-founder <keyword id="198636" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Vijay-Shekhar-Sharma">Vijay Shekhar Sharma</keyword> and <keyword id="161314" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="SAIF-Partners">Saif Partners</keyword>’ Alok Goel on board as directors. 
 
"Vijay and Alok will be joining our board, they will help immensely in taking the next leap," Manish Chopra, CEO of Little, told ET. 
 This comes a few months after SAIF Partneres, Paytm and <keyword id="526777" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Tiger-Global">Tiger Global</keyword> Management invested $50 million in this mobile-only app, which started operations three months ago. 
 
Little offers over 30,000 deals from over 10,000 merchants and approximately 500,000 users on the app get access to last last minute inventory deals on restaurants, movies, hotels, salons etc on a real-time hyperlocal basis at heavy discounts across 11 cities. 
 
Over the next four months the company plans to expand to 1000 people from 400 presently and add more cities besides aiming to offer 50,000 deals, which will drive in the business and scale up number of daily transactions from 15,000. 
 
According to Sharma, Paytm's capability and consumer base becomes an advantage for Little. 
 
"Paytm will help Little acquire customers faster, sort out payment and the preference level, and we're able to bring these differentiators," he told ET. 
 
Little Internet Pvt Ltd is run by Manish Chopra and Satish Mani, both of whom co-founded online fashion brand Zovi. Both Chopra and Mani continue to run Zovi, which is also backed by SAIF and Tiger Global. 
 
Image credit: Indiatimes

Paytm's Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Saif Partners' Alok Goel join deal discovery app Little as directors

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>LeBron James hit a miraculous three-pointer in the final seconds of regulation to force overtime against the Spurs, only to fall short in the final seconds of the extra period.</li><li>At the foul line with a chance to seal the game, James missed consecutive free throws, leaving the door open for the Spurs to win with their final shot.</li><li>San Antonio found Patty Mills for the game-winner, leaving Los Angeles fans stunned and the Lakers still seeking their first win of the season.</li></ul>It looked like LeBron James had pulled off yet another miracle.Seeking their first win of the season against the San Antonio Spurs with <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jalen-rose-conspiracy-theory-lakers-rockets-brawl-rajon-rondo-brandon-ingram-suspensions-2018-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a short-handed roster due to suspensions doled out</a> to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/rockets-lakers-fight-rajon-rondo-spits-chris-paul-lebron-james-2018-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brandon Ingram and Rajon Rondo</a>, LeBron and the Lakers had trailed most of the game, but pulled within striking distance of Gregg Popovich's squad late in the fourth quarter.With the Lakers down 128-125 to the Spurs in the waning seconds of regulation, James pulled up for an absurd three-pointer to tie the game.The Staples Center erupted, knowing that this was the first of many brilliant moments LeBron would provide as the new centerpiece of the Lakers.All that was left was to wrap things up in overtime, and with the Lakers building their lead to 139-133 with two minutes remaining in the extra period, things felt locked up for Los Angeles.But the Spurs didn't quit, with Rudy Gay hitting a clutch three of his own with just 15 seconds left to pull San Antonio within one.The Spurs then fouled James, sending him to the line to shoot two free throws that could have all but iced the game for the Lakers.Shockingly, he missed both.Still, the Lakers needed only a single stop at the defensive end to get their first victory - would LeBron's next thrilling play come in the form of a game-saving block or steal?Unfortunately for Los Angeles fans, it would not.After advancing the ball with a timeout, the Spurs ran a crafty inbound play to get Patty Mills open for the game-winning jumper.He hit nothing but net.The Lakers had a few seconds left to try and manage another potential game-saving shot, but James couldn't connect on a second pivotal jumper, and the game went final, with the Spurs winning the shootout 143-142.James will undoubtedly have more chances to stamp his place in Lakers history, but the script looked perfectly written for him to do it on Monday night, and to see him falter was jarring to anyone whose watched him perform miracle after miracle on the basketball court over his storied career.The Lakers will try for their first win of the season again on Wednesday night when they travel to Phoenix to take on the Suns.<div></div><div></div><div></div> <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-newborn-babies-cant-drink-water-dangerous-2018-9">Why babies can't drink water</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

LeBron James misses crucial free throws in final seconds of overtime as Lakers drop to 0-3 to start the season

<div class="image-container float_right" style="width:480px"><div class="image">TwitterKatie Moussouris, senior <keyword id="6355300" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="security">security</keyword> strategist at <keyword id="10387" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Microsoft">Microsoft</keyword></div></div>Later this month, Microsoft will start doing something it has never done before. 
Starting June 26, Microsoft will pay a cash bounty to <keyword id="11094" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Hackers">hackers</keyword> who find undiscovered security holes in <keyword id="656949" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Windows-8">Windows 8</keyword> and Internet Explorer 11 and submit them.
In this case, "hackers" doesn't mean people who find flaws in Windows and use them to make money, but researchers who hack software to let vendors know what they need to fix. 
Here's a breakdown of Microsoft's Windows bug bounty program:
<ul>
<li>Microsoft will pay up to $100,000 for "truly novel exploitation techniques" that can be used to break the security tech in the Windows 8.1 preview, Katie Moussouris, senior security strategist at Microsoft, <a href="http://blogs.technet.com/b/bluehat/archive/2013/06/19/heart-of-blue-gold-announcing-new-bounty-programs.aspx">said in a Wednesday blog post</a>.</li>
<li>To be eligible for the $100,000, a contestant must write code that can be used to take control of a Windows PC over the Internet, which is the most severe type of flaw.</li>
<li>Contestants can get up to $50,000 more if they can also develop a way to defend against the code they've written.</li>
<li>Microsoft will also pay up to $11,000 for flaws that affect its Internet Explorer 11 Preview, which runs from June 26 to July 26.</li>
</ul>
This is an important move for Microsoft. While other vendors have paid bounties for security flaws for years, Microsoft has resisted doing so, in part because it has a huge in-house security research team.
Now Microsoft has decided that crowdsourcing discovery of security flaws, and paying a bounty to researchers who find them is a way to keep Windows 8 from becoming a hackers' playground. 
Judging from researchers' <a href="https://twitter.com/k8em0">reactions on </a><a href="https://twitter.com/k8em0">Moussouris' Twitter</a> on Wednesday, Microsoft's bounty program is already a hit.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<a href="https://twitter.com/k8em0">@k8em0</a> Congratulations! Glad you guys finally did this.
— The Dark Tangent (@thedarktangent) <a href="https://twitter.com/thedarktangent/statuses/347440744660877313">June 19, 2013</a></blockquote>



<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Microsoft actually implemented this Bug Bounty program the right way, good job <a href="https://twitter.com/k8em0">@k8em0</a>
— Vincenzo Iozzo (@_snagg) <a href="https://twitter.com/_snagg/statuses/347401985860976640">June 19, 2013</a></blockquote>



<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
I'm amazed that <a href="https://twitter.com/k8em0">@k8em0</a> pulled it off. Not because she isn't capable (she is very), but I can only imagine what a challenge it was. Nice job!
— Dino A. Dai Zovi (@dinodaizovi) <a href="https://twitter.com/dinodaizovi/statuses/347416357589090304">June 19, 2013</a></blockquote>

Microsoft Is Paying Hackers Up To $150K To Tear Security Holes In Windows And Internet Explorer

After some teething problems like the not-so-exciting deals in the first year and the site crashing for a day in 2013, the Great Online Shopping Festival (GOSF) finally had a great time sailing this year. To mark the beginning of GOSF this year, <keyword id="6355629" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Google">Google</keyword> and its partners started pre-party celebrations (from Dec 9) and launched contests, games and surprise gifts. This, obviously, was Google’s well-thought and well-timed strategy to build ample anticipation around India’s biggest shopping gala. With a patronage of more than 450 partners, <keyword id="2622320" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="GOSF-2014">GOSF 2014</keyword> had set the stage for a never-seen-before shopping frenzy. However, all was not rosy during these ‘72 hours of crazy’ shopping. Like all things colossal, this extravaganza, too, was marred with some snags. 
 
Mehul Jobanputra, CEO and co-founder of DesiDime.com, India’s largest online shopping community, shares a few hits and misses of GOSF 2014. 
 
HIT: No Speed-breakers Ahead 
Of all Internet errors, the ‘500 internal server error’ is the most annoying and most common. But, despite experiencing more than twice their usual traffic, most GOSF partner websites successfully run during the sale without going offline even for a minute. This year, both Google and the merchant sites were well-prepared to stand steady under the sheer weight of massive numbers, thus giving shoppers a bump-free ride. 
 
HIT: The Rs 299 Corner 
 
This unassuming offer won the highest number of fans for GOSF 2014. Be it fashion apparels, shoes, watches, soft toys, sunglasses, cookware, home décor items, kitchen appliances, almost everything was up for grabs at this small sum. However, the modesty of price did not translate to humble goods. The products on offer in this section were vast in quality, quantity as well as range. Coming from known brands and trustworthy merchants, goods from this corner were seized in big numbers, far and wide. 
 
HIT: The Great Social Media Buzz 
Google made optimal use of the micro-blogging site Twitter during the run-up to GOSF 2014 as well as during the main event. It encouraged word-of-mouth publicity with various Twitter contests, which eventually led to shoppers sharing their experiences and discussing deals of GOSF 2014. #72HoursOfCrazy and #GOSFWithSnapdeal were the most trending GOSF related hashtags on day 1, while the former had become the 5th most trending topic worldwide on day 3. 
 
HIT: Small Merchants, Big Show 
The rule of the jungle did not apply here. Relatively smaller and lesser known merchants put up an equally strong show against the much familiar giants. Paytm, Limeroad, Zovi, Yepme, Justeat, Foodpanda and Trendin were some of the underlings who turned out to be the dark horses in this Derby of discounts. While Paytm won the day with its fat cashback offers, Limeroad took the cake away with its Buy One Get One offer across all categories. In short, customers got a wider variety to choose from this GOSF. 
 
HIT: Online Real Estate Arrives 
Who would have thought that the erstwhile apprehensive Indian buyer, who found it hard to trust the virtual space even with its most trivial shopping requirements, could be lured in to investing in real estate online? According to reports, Tata Housing received around 10,000 bookings and a Bangalore-based real estate developer, Purvankara booked 125 homes on the first day itself. The numbers were beyond the wildest dreams of both GOSF as well as of the realty partners. GOSF 2014 certainly succeeded in asserting the online presence of the Indian real estate category. 
 
MISS: No Flipkart 
 
India’s big shopping festival felt so incomplete without Flipkart. The latter’s loyalists would have surely missed its absence sorely, thereby dampening their enthusiasm for GOSF 2014. True that Flipkart launched its own Big App Shopping Days for them, but it did miss out on the greater bulk of customers, who still prefer making online purchases on desktops and laptops. This one was a miss for GOSF, Flipkart and the consumers, alike. 
 
MISS: Mobile phone deals, less than wow 
Although statistics indicate that mobile phones and tablets were the most popular products in GOSF 2014, the discounts on these were less exciting than expected. The ones that were truly mind-blowing lasted for about a few hours, and in some cases, only a few minutes. Some of the craziest deals on mobile phones were: iPhone 6 at Rs 26,750 on Shopclues, Micromax Canvas A1 at Rs 5,999 on Amazon India and some lesser-known mobile phones at Rs 299 on Shopclues. 
 
MISS: Weekend Shoppers 
Like every year, GOSF arrived on a Wednesday this year, too. Although it lasted for a good three days, it was over before the weekend began. While this is obviously because the online shopping arena witnesses a surge in traffic during weekdays, Google misses out on the weekend shoppers every year. 
 
(About the author: The article has been submitted by desidime.com) 
 
(Image courtesy:www.<a href="http://offoindia.com/">offoindia.com)</a>

Hits & Misses of Of GOSF 2014

BANGALORE: Flipkart could be weeks away from concluding a deal to buy rival Myntra as the two sides engage in last-minute haggling over valuation before concluding what will be the biggest transaction in India’s online retail industry. People with knowledge of the talks said fashion portal Myntra is aiming for a valuation of $400 million (Rs 2,400 crore). 
 
The company, based in Bangalore, is founded by Mukesh Bansal, 38, an IIT-Kanpur graduate. But Flipkart, also based in Bangalore and cofounded by 32-yearold IIT-Delhi alumnus Sachin Bansal (the two Bansals are not related), may not be willing to concede that much. 
 
Negotiators are considering a "target valuation" of $350 million, and may push the offer to $370 million, but there is "no possibility" of valuing Myntra at $400 million, according to a source with direct knowledge of talks. Representatives of Flipkart and Myntra declined to comment. The deal is being stitched during a period of frenetic activity in the ecommerce space. 
 
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Holding co to own shares in cos 
 
Amazon, the world’s largest online retailer, is steadily building out its India operation -- it will start selling fashion items in the next few weeks -- while the country adds hundreds of thousands of new online shoppers every month. 
 
The timing of the transaction also takes into account an initial public offering of Flipkart’s shares next year, most probably on the Nasdaq stock exchange in the United States, sources said. Flipkart, which raised $360 million in two rounds in 2013, was valued at around $1.6 billion in July last year. 
 
The valuation is "significantly more" now, the sources said without disclosing how much. India's largest online retailer hit the billion-dollar milestone in annual gross merchandise value last month. 
 
The sources who briefed ET about the contours of the deal that is taking shape said that Mukesh Bansal will most likely be given independent responsibility for all fashion retail at the combined business, including Myntra as well as Flipkart’s fashion unit. This is the model that Amazon followed when it acquired shoe and clothing retailer Zappos in 2009, which even now runs as an independent company. A holding company will own shares in Flipkart and Myntra. 
 
A Flipkart-Myntra combine is aimed at shoring up the former's leadership in India's booming online retail industry, projected to reach $8.5 billion (over Rs 51,000 crore) in size in 2016. Moreover, Amazon is making its presence felt just eight months after entering India -- it has introduced about 20 categories of products and more are on the way. 
 
Myntra's Mukesh Bansal has said the company needs about $100-150 million (Rs 600 crore to Rs 900 crore) in the next three years to reach its goal of becoming a Rs 20,000-crore fashion company in 2020. Flipkart has made a commitment to pump in over $100 million (Rs 600 crore) into the company, said a consultant. 
 
"This will help (the country’s biggest fashion portal) Myntra take on competition like Jabong and other fashion sites. And by joining hands, both will be able to take on Amazon, which is the major driving force in these talks," said the consultant who has worked with Flipkart and Myntra. 
 
Ashish Jhalani, head of advisory firm eTailing India, said the potential merger indicates how Amazon has changed the game in a short time. "It is imperative that the merger goes through and a very formidable domestic player emerges that can compete with Amazon and eBay," said Jhalani. 
 
Common investors such as earlystage investor Accel Partners and investment fund Tiger Global are expected to remain invested in Myntra, as also recent investor Premji Invest, which participated in the Rs 300-crore funding round in the fashion portal in February. 
 
The two companies now have three common investors — Accel, Tiger and Belgium-based family office Sofina. Myntra’s other investors are IDG Ventures India and Kalaari Capital. 
 
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"If a deal happens, it will get done by end of the month," a source said, adding that the transaction will have elements of cash and stock without providing details. 
 
Fashion, which delivers over 35% in operating margin, is among the most contested categories in ecommerce and has seen the emergence of players like Jabong, Fashionara and Limeroad and even web-only brands like Yepme and Zovi. 
 
"The Flipkart and Myntra merger will create the first Indian e-tailing powerhouse, and provide a big fillip to India's still nascent but very promising e-commerce industry," said Arvind Singhal, chairman of retail advisory services firm Technopak. 
 
Flipkart, which introduced fashion in 2012, has a focus on providing a large selection, while Myntra is seen as a curated fashion destination with focus on quality of selection.

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