Wal-Mart has decided to do battle with Amazon.com, CinemaNow and iTunes.
The retailer is partnering with Walt Disney, Warner Bros., Paramount, Sony, 20th Century Fox and Universal to sell digital movies and television shows on its Web site.
Two years ago Wal-Mart’s attempt at online video rentals failed.

Historically men are the big spenders when hit by cupid’s arrow and this Valentine’s Day is no exception.
According to the National Retail Federation’s 2007 Valentine’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by BIGresearch, the average man is expected to spend $156.22, nearly double the $85.08 that the average woman will spend.

Several weeks after the holiday season, retailers are seeing no slowing in consumers’ use of gift cards.
According to a National Retail Federation survey conducted by BIGresearch, consumers have plenty of money left on their gift cards: shoppers said they had spent less than half the value (37.3 percent on average) by the second week in January.

Take a Peak is an initiative created by the Grocery Manufacturers Association/Food Products Association, the Food Marketing Institute and MatchPoint Marketing.
The program will promote the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPyramid, the government’s food guidance system.

Promoting his new single, country music artist Danny Griego ran a TV commercial during a college football bowl game featuring scantily dressed “Wal-Mart Girls.”
Miramonte Records paid $112,000 to air the 30-second ad twice in a bid to promote the single and create hype for the Web site, walmartgirlssong.com. Within 24 hours of the ads airing, the site logged 65,000 hits, and more than 6,000 users played the music video online.

Consumers often turn to cyberspace to sell or swap unwanted gift cards. This method gives consumers an opportunity to find a better deal than buying the card from a traditional store.
Sites like swapagift.com, cardavenue.com and plasticjungle.com have all reported a surge in traffic during the last year.

Retail vacancy rates in downtown Colorado Springs increased during 2006, yet high gas prices kept people shopping locally. The malls gained a national chain and online sales reached a record high, making for a robust year.

Store employees are dreaming about the phrase, and gift recipients will be searching their presents for the square piece of paper known as the gift receipt.
The value of the gift receipt has increased as retailers have revamped their return policies.

Consumer spending this holiday season has risen 5 percent compared to last year. Christmas shoppers will spend an average of $607.01 for gifts, compared to $580.56 in 2005.
According to BIGresearch, shoppers will spend $454 on presents for their families, compared to $86.13 and $22.29 for their friends and coworkers, respectively.

Cyber Monday Internet traffic hit an all -time high on the Monday after Thanksgiving. According to industry tracker comScore Networks the Web sites had a 26 percent gain in sales, reaching $608 million, compared to the same day in 2005.
Growth outpaced the 3.4 percent year-over-year sales gains on Black Friday and the slight drop in sales the following day.