Rakuten bought Buy.com in 2010.

OldNewsIsSoExciting.jpg

Babwa Wawa: Quick thought exercise:  If one of the following companies disappeared tomorrow, which would have the most effect on your daily life?

-Apple
-Google
-Facebook
-Amazon

If any of the first three disappeared with all their products, I'd be OK.  I'd get an Android.  I'd build another network with my friends in Google+, Linkedin or any f*cking social site.  Email's ubiquitous.   OTOH, the loss of Amazon would represent a major lifestyle change for me.  I'd be back to driving all to hell and back finding shiat that I want, or simply living without it.  It would take years for any company to build up the infrastructure that can replace it.  The most likely replacements would be Target and Walmart.com, but they both suck ass AFAIK.

As such, there is a huge need for a true, well-financed Amazon competitor.

Good luck with all that.

Dunno. We lived without it for a long time, but I'd hate to have me mp3 collection disappear. And my company just started using AWS.

Oh, they provided a pronunciation guide - that was nice of them.

 .... "rack" - "ah" - "ten"  ?

Oookay... I suppose if you pronounce it really fast, it kind of, vaguely, sounds like the original Japanese pronunciation ("lah" - "koo" - "ten").

Babwa Wawa: the loss of Amazon would represent a major lifestyle change for me. I'd be back to driving all to hell and back finding shiat that I want, or simply living without it.

Newegg, monoprice, thinkgeek, and there's a fry's in this town. I would make due without amazon.

But google going means no google search, and the only thing that could match it was infoseek way back when (but infoseek couldn't scale), so fark that.

Why would you give up the name "Buy.com"?  Seems like pretty valuable net real estate, just relaunch the hell out of it with a Superbowl campaign.

Quick thought exercise
none of those matter to me. my amazon credit card is my goto card but amazon isn't what it used to be. i'm thinking of dropping the card.i can almost always find the same price or lower elsewhere. and when looking for niche items like the crap load of fishing gear i buy why waste time looking through the clusterfark of useless ways they category fishing and the limited selection.

Babwa Wawa:

As such, there is a huge need for a true, well-financed Amazon competitor.

Say hello to Newegg.

After having to deal with hell with Amazon for the last week to get a refund back then I'm all for it.

Amazon now only processes refunds through Amazon Payments.  Which is run pretty much like PayPal is run: by idiots, assholes, and automated machines.  The instant the refund hit my Payments account Amazon froze it because they could not verify it.  This account has been open for over a year at this point.  But nope, apparently it's just the instant that they owe me money that there are issues, not when I used it to pay others.  Their suggestions was simply to open a new account (though none of my money would be accessible through the new account, and they said they regretted that).  New account was also frozen instantly when I tried to link it.

They said the only way to verify my account was to send copies of my birth certificate, driver's license, and social security card to them.  But they can't accept any documents containing secure information.

It's like being trapped in hell.  All over $19 farking dollars.

/still bitter about the entire farking thing
//I just want my goddamn money, it should be this difficult!
/would happily accept a competitor at this point as it's clear Amazon has let their power go to their head

They're obviously much more aggressive in trying to grab customers than Amazon. Here's a sample of Rakuten's product line:


SEXPOT sexual intercourse pot

Everything I now buy at Amazon (besides books) I used to purchase at Buy.com back in the days.  When DVDs first took off they sometimes had crazy-good deals.

Would check to see when my last buy.com purchase was but they don't recognize any email address I've used in the past decade.  Guess that kinda answers the question.

Wow, that's dumb. Buy.com is a much catchier name.

sirrerun: Babwa Wawa:

As such, there is a huge need for a true, well-financed Amazon competitor.

Say hello to Newegg.

Newegg is still pretty new in the general consumer market. They've been the online store of choice for
knowledgeable geeks for almost 10 years. They still have one whole hell of a lot of catching up to do
if they want to seriously put any sort of dent in Amazon.

RexTalionis: I think it'll be pretty much impossible to compete with Amazon on Amazon's term. Amazon has spent the last decade deferring massive profits by using their money to build massive amounts of infrastructure necessary to make it possible to put out the volume of stuff they do on a daily basis.

If you want to be as big as Amazon, you're going to have to literally spend billions of dollars to build warehouses and data centers just to match what Amazon can do now, all within a very short time frame.

Buy.com didn't already have distribution centers?

WordyGrrl : They're obviously much more aggressive in trying to grab customers than Amazon. Here's a sample of Rakuten's product line:

After a few seconds of searching, I think "One sexpot sexual intercourse pot" is actually a brand, and that's probably a bad translation of the brand's name into English.

One SEXPOT sexual intercourse pot pyramid SKULL choker SD41009-101
All like-new SEXPOT ReVeNGe black prisoner horizontal stripe mesh parka (Border mesh black prisoner Parker) sexual intercourse pot revenge jacket blouson

sparkeyjames: sirrerun: Babwa Wawa:

As such, there is a huge need for a true, well-financed Amazon competitor.

Say hello to Newegg.

Newegg is still pretty new in the general consumer market. They've been the online store of choice for
knowledgeable geeks for almost 10 years. They still have one whole hell of a lot of catching up to do
if they want to seriously put any sort of dent in Amazon.

Ummm...I don't think NewEgg is going for a complete marketplace. They are all about technology items and accessories. They're not going to start trying to sell books, furniture, clothes, etc.

Screw competing with Amazon, give me a cheap site to get all sorts of weird Japanese stuff without paying for shipping FROM Japan.

ShawnDoc: Dalek Caan's doomed mistress: Amazon now only processes refunds through Amazon Payments.

No they don't.  I just got a refund credited directly back to my credit card 10 days ago.  They gave me an instant refund to my CC, and gave me 30 days to mail back the item at their expense.

Then you, my friend, are far farking luckier than I.  Every time I've asked why they won't just do that (the item never shipped in the first place so I have nothing to return) they keep telling me that federal law prevents it (which, yes, is complete bs, but that's all anyone on the phone or in e-mail will say), and that they can't do that because they can't verify the details in my account.  An account that's been active for over ten years.

I have no clue what's wrong with that company now.  I've never had an issue before, but the instant Payments it got bad.

wildcardjack: Screw competing with Amazon, give me a cheap site to get all sorts of weird Japanese stuff without paying for shipping FROM Japan.

http://www.jlist.com/home  (some NSFW items)

Most of their stuff ships from San Diego. Anything that has to ship from Japan is marked.

RexTalionis: I think it'll be pretty much impossible to compete with Amazon on Amazon's term. Amazon has spent the last decade deferring massive profits by using their money to build massive amounts of infrastructure necessary to make it possible to put out the volume of stuff they do on a daily basis.

If you want to be as big as Amazon, you're going to have to literally spend billions of dollars to build warehouses and data centers just to match what Amazon can do now, all within a very short time frame.

I was just reading today about his very thing.  Amazon's narrow profit margins mean that it will be nearly impossible for a competitor to really challenge them.

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/02/why-amazon-is-sp ec ial-and-apple-is-not-in-1-paragraph/272791/

Mad_Radhu: Dalek Caan's doomed mistress: ShawnDoc: Dalek Caan's doomed mistress: Amazon now only processes refunds through Amazon Payments.

No they don't.  I just got a refund credited directly back to my credit card 10 days ago.  They gave me an instant refund to my CC, and gave me 30 days to mail back the item at their expense.

Then you, my friend, are far farking luckier than I.  Every time I've asked why they won't just do that (the item never shipped in the first place so I have nothing to return) they keep telling me that federal law prevents it (which, yes, is complete bs, but that's all anyone on the phone or in e-mail will say), and that they can't do that because they can't verify the details in my account.  An account that's been active for over ten years.

I have no clue what's wrong with that company now.  I've never had an issue before, but the instant Payments it got bad.


Are you sure you didn't accidentally buy something off of Amazo.com instead? Last week I got a refund on a KINDLE book back to my card instantly.

This.  Heck, my computer was acting up the other day so I didn't finish watching a movie rental from Amazon.  They refunded my money without even me asking.

/also finally got around to getting their Chase credit card.  Bam.... $50 immediately credited to my account and now 3% off of my Amazon direct purchases.

//Amazon Prime kicks so much ass.

///Ordered a movie screen on Saturday morning; Bam.... shows up in my hands the following Monday, with the standard 2 day shipment service selected.

////Ordered a toilet once for a friend as a practical joke; Bam... $3.99 to overnight the 100+ pound  thing.

Babwa Wawa: OTOH, the loss of Amazon would represent a major lifestyle change for me. I'd be back to driving all to hell and back finding shiat that I want, or simply living without it. It would take years for any company to build up the infrastructure that can replace it. The most likely replacements would be Target and Walmart.com, but they both suck ass AFAIK.

Which is funny, because Amazon ran Target's online store from 2001 to 2011.  But you're right.  It's damn near impossible to get the same amount of goods as Amazon has available, even by searching through Google Shopping.

Rakuten is serious farking business in Japan. Amazon sells a lot of common things that lots of people buy, but Rakuten sells it all.

/millions of dollars through Rakuten every year
//import export

Babwa Wawa: Quick thought exercise:  If one of the following companies disappeared tomorrow, which would have the most effect on your daily life?

-Apple
-Google
-Facebook
-Amazon

Never try to make business decisions with the assumption that everyone thinks/acts/likes/shops the same as you.

For me, and tens of million other mes, I would have serious problems running my business and my daily life without Google.

The other three disappearing would have little to no effect.  For me and all my mini-mes. YMMV.

Chelsea Clinton Is Carrot Top's Lost Twin: //Amazon Prime kicks so much ass.

///Ordered a movie screen on Saturday morning; Bam.... shows up in my hands the following Monday, with the standard 2 day shipment service selected.

Heck... sometimes it's even better than that. Lost my last 0.38 pen Friday morning. Got on my phone, ordered a new box. Delivered Saturday afternoon despite a delivery date of Tuesday.

El Pachuco: Babwa Wawa: Quick thought exercise:  If one of the following companies disappeared tomorrow, which would have the most effect on your daily life?

-Apple
-Google
-Facebook
-Amazon

Never try to make business decisions with the assumption that everyone thinks/acts/likes/shops the same as you.

For me, and tens of million other mes, I would have serious problems running my business and my daily life without Google.

The other three disappearing would have little to no effect.  For me and all my mini-mes. YMMV.

With what you said I could live without all of them. I refuse to use anything Apple, use Google for searches/GTalk/G+, order from Amazon maybe once a quarter, and Facebook just passes time when I am bored. Technology makes our lives a lot easier but isn't our life support.

Mad_Radhu: Dalek Caan's doomed mistress: ShawnDoc: Dalek Caan's doomed mistress: Amazon now only processes refunds through Amazon Payments.

No they don't.  I just got a refund credited directly back to my credit card 10 days ago.  They gave me an instant refund to my CC, and gave me 30 days to mail back the item at their expense.

Then you, my friend, are far farking luckier than I.  Every time I've asked why they won't just do that (the item never shipped in the first place so I have nothing to return) they keep telling me that federal law prevents it (which, yes, is complete bs, but that's all anyone on the phone or in e-mail will say), and that they can't do that because they can't verify the details in my account.  An account that's been active for over ten years.

I have no clue what's wrong with that company now.  I've never had an issue before, but the instant Payments it got bad.


Are you sure you didn't accidentally buy something off of Amazo.com instead? Last week I got a refund on a KINDLE book back to my card instantly.

No, it was Amazon.  I bought an old textbook for class and then got the message a little while later that it was out of stock and that they would be refunding my money through Payments (I still have no clue why, the entire Payments system is pants on head retarded), and then things went to hell.  I asked my credit union and they told me that no one from Amazon has tried to get a hold of them at all.  They told me that if Amazon hasn't refunded me fully by next Friday I can just file a fraud charge and get the  money back that way.  Apparently a few college kids in town are having this issue, but only with textbooks (small town, word gets around) from Amazon.

It's just annoying.  And frustrating because it's just soured me on Amazon as a whole when they play this shiat because, apparently, they think they can get away with it.

Dalek Caan's doomed mistress: No, it was Amazon. I bought an old textbook for class and then got the message a little while later that it was out of stock and that they would be refunding my money through Payments (I still have no clue why, the entire Payments system is pants on head retarded), and then things went to hell. I asked my credit union and they told me that no one from Amazon has tried to get a hold of them at all. They told me that if Amazon hasn't refunded me fully by next Friday I can just file a fraud charge and get the money back that way. Apparently a few college kids in town are having this issue, but only with textbooks (small town, word gets around) from Amazon.

It's just annoying. And frustrating because it's just soured me on Amazon as a whole when they play this shiat because, apparently, they think they can get away with it.

Are you actually buying from Amazon, or a 3rd-party merchant? If it's a merchant, they may be trying to screw you and you should contact Amazon about an actual refund (and getting that merchant's ass kicked out).

VarmintCong: Dalek Caan's doomed mistress: No, it was Amazon. I bought an old textbook for class and then got the message a little while later that it was out of stock and that they would be refunding my money through Payments (I still have no clue why, the entire Payments system is pants on head retarded), and then things went to hell. I asked my credit union and they told me that no one from Amazon has tried to get a hold of them at all. They told me that if Amazon hasn't refunded me fully by next Friday I can just file a fraud charge and get the money back that way. Apparently a few college kids in town are having this issue, but only with textbooks (small town, word gets around) from Amazon.

It's just annoying. And frustrating because it's just soured me on Amazon as a whole when they play this shiat because, apparently, they think they can get away with it.

Are you actually buying from Amazon, or a 3rd-party merchant? If it's a merchant, they may be trying to screw you and you should contact Amazon about an actual refund (and getting that merchant's ass kicked out).

Actual Amazon, though Amazon has 'official' third party merchants and this might be one of them (Amazon is getting surprisingly big in the textbook game).  I've been on the phone fairly constantly with Amazon and they confirm that it is an issue on their end... they just won't do anything to fix it.  Because I need to send them paperwork... and they won't accept paperwork.  Like a never ending circle of stupid.

Kind of sad in a way because Buy.com used to be one of the places to go for tech deals some time ago, even though I haven't bought anything there for years. I'm kind of surprised to see that they were still out there since so many folded after the dot com bubble burst. Takes me back to trolling for deals on PC components there or at the Egghead, (Original) OnSale or (Original) UBid auction sites.

An alternative to Amazon is fine with me though.

here's a lesson or two.  to never use inhalents

they can tear you in two
so never use inhalents

using them, is really no good
don't you KNOW that inhalents CAN KILL?

don't use inhalants (you'll be travelling weird)
don't use inhalents (you won't remember your name)
don't use inhalents (cause it's really insane)

SMART KIDS SAY NO!
cause inhalents KILL!

RabidJade: El Pachuco: Babwa Wawa: Quick thought exercise:  If one of the following companies disappeared tomorrow, which would have the most effect on your daily life?

-Apple
-Google
-Facebook
-Amazon

Never try to make business decisions with the assumption that everyone thinks/acts/likes/shops the same as you.

For me, and tens of million other mes, I would have serious problems running my business and my daily life without Google.

The other three disappearing would have little to no effect.  For me and all my mini-mes. YMMV.

With what you said I could live without all of them. I refuse to use anything Apple, use Google for searches/GTalk/G+, order from Amazon maybe once a quarter, and Facebook just passes time when I am bored. Technology makes our lives a lot easier but isn't our life support.

It's generally accepted at this point that virtually everything you do online at some point touches a Google server.  Most people would be very surprised to find out just how much of their info is tied to an Amazon AWS server.  If either of those two companies were to go black tomorrow, major sections of the internet would go with them, and recovery time for a lot of it would be measured in weeks or months, not hours or days.  Between the two of them, they have spent years, and billions, to bury themselves deep into the infrastructure of the internet as a whole.