Weekly News: JD will deliver with drones, European Commission starts checking websites, Amazon launches Cash
JD.com to build 150 airports for drone delivery in China
The Chinese e-commerce giant said it will build 150 airports in southwestern Sichuan province for unmanned aerial vehicle delivery. The airports are expected to open in three years and the drone delivery will help reduce the freight costs by 70 per cent. JD.com’s drone service will deliver Sichuan’s products to shoppers nationwide within 24 hours and will improve delivery efficiency in remote mountainous areas in Sichuan. JD.com has been developing drone delivery to meet the rising retail demand in China’s rural areas, where complex terrain and underdeveloped infrastructure have compromised timely human courier delivery.
More details at Indian Express
Romanians’ budget for Easter shopping
According to a survey by Answear.ro, 34.1% of the respondents reserve up to 300 lei to buy online fashion products for Easter. Almost one third of the respondents would spend between 500 and 1.000 lei, whereas 34.4% of them said they didn’t set a budget yet and they will start shopping one or two days before Easter. Concerning the desired products, 60% of the respondents said that they will buy stylish clothes or sports products.
Booking your holidays online: Commission and consumer protection authorities act on misleading travel booking websites
The European Commission and EU consumer protection authorities launched a coordinated screening of 352 price comparison and travel booking websites across the EU in October 2016. They found that prices were not reliable on 235 websites, two-thirds of the sites checked. For example, additional price elements were added at a late stage of the booking process without clearly informing the consumer or promotional prices did not correspond to any available service. Authorities have asked the websites concerned to bring their practices in line with EU consumer legislation, which requires them to be fully transparent about prices and present their offers in a clear way, at an early stage of the booking process.
Amazon launches Amazon Cash, a way to shop its site without a bank card
Amazon Cash is a new service that allows consumers to add cash to their Amazon.com balance by showing a barcode at a participating retailer, then having the cash applied immediately to their online Amazon account. The service will support adding any amount between $15 and $500 in a single transaction, Amazon says. Amazon Cash will be available at brick-and-mortar retailers across the U.S., including CVS Pharmacy, Speedway, Sheetz, Kum & Go, D&W Fresh Market, Family Fare Supermarkets, and VG’s Grocery. Other stores will be added in the future. Like PayPal, Amazon Cash is also meant to appeal to the same general demographic who may not yet be shopping online – those who get paid in cash, don’t have a bank account or debit card, and who don’t use credit cards.
eMAG opens in Sibiu biggest showroom outside Bucharest
eMAG opened in Sibiu its biggest showroom located outside of the capital, which will display over 600 products on a total surface of around 600 square meters. Starting September, the showroom will be transformed into the first eMAG showroom drive-in. The opening of the showroom is part of the retailer’s national expansion strategy. The new showroom is the first to open this year outside of Bucharest, after last month’s launch of the Titan Gallery. eMAG clients will be able to test there, before placing an order, products included in categories such as IT products and solutions, gaming, personal care products and smart tech.
More details at Business Review
