WeChat has enjoyed explosive growth over the last few years and has de-throned Weibo as the go-to social medium in China. In this first wave of growth, it has been the networking and communications functions thathave been most notable. The comparisons to Weibo during this first wave have been easy to make. WeChat and Weibo both allow for audiences to group friends together, share information, and stories. But WeChat is different in a couple of critical areas: first, the connections between friends are much tighter, and second, WeChat is a native mobile application and takes advantage of this with unique …

The latest update to Walgreens' iOS application uses store-specific offers to harness customer loyalty and brings added value through a more customized experience. The new Weekly Ad feature introduced allows users to create their own flagship location from which they will be able to receive more relevant offers. Walgreens joins a growing list of retailers who are betting on in-store modes to engage with consumers while shopping. "Walgreens in-store mode provides customers with convenient access to their clipped coupons and in-store map," said Mai Lee Ua, senior manager of public relations at Walgreens, Deerfield.

According to the results of recent mobile commerce research that was conducted on behalf of ActiePagina.nl, part of the RetailMeNot marketplace, the Dutch will be spending an estimated 69.8 percent more, this year, over their smartphones and tablets than they did last year. The report on this research showed that it is likely that by the end of 2014, people in the Netherlands will have spent approximately EUR730 million over mobile commerce and that this will bring the country up into the top five regions in Europe for spending over smartphones and tablet computers. The study, itself, was conducted by …

Suresh Sethi has just finished launching M-Pesa, the financial inclusion and mobile commerce service by Vodafone , in Kerala. "We will complete M-Pesa roll out in India tomorrow," he says. Sethi, who heads M-Pesa in India, is flying to Hyderabad on Wednesday to launch the service in Andhra Pradesh. The service, which helps transfer of money over mobile, and is used to pay utility bills, mobile bills, recharge phones and make DTH payments, was started and pioneered in Kenya since 2006. It was later brought to India, as Marten Pieters, Managing Director and CEO of Vodafone India saw opportunity in …

"Mobile commerce is our direction this year. We target first-time e-commerce buyers who normally go online via mobile phone. We will focus on doing marketing campaigns over the mobile platform. This year we set a bigger marketing budget to drive sales volumes from this target group. Our marketing budget is also supported by Rakuten's head office," Pawoot Pongvitayapanu, founder and managing director, said yesterday. Thailand is now moving towards the mobile commerce era with people shopping more online via mobile devices, both smartphones and tablets, he said. Mobile commerce has been the star business, ramping up from 27 per cent …

Although the obvious purpose of the set box gadget that Amazon has recently released would be to give users the opportunity to stream video on their high-def televisions, there are many that are suggesting that this is only a first step before integrating a tablet commerce experience into the mix. This gadget currently retails for $99 and while it is similar to Chromecast and Roku in that it allows high-def TVs to stream video from the internet, it also leaps ahead of them with its advanced features which include an optional game controller for an additional $39.99 and a voice …

Target is expanding its online subscription service to include more than 1,000 new products, but is likely struggle to scale in an already crowded market without a solid mobile component. Target Subscriptions is an online shopping service that lets consumers set up deliveries for consumer-packaged goods products that consumers buy regularly from brands such as Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson and Kimberly-Clark. Target Subscriptions has been live for six months, and the retailer reports that the program accounts for 15 percent of all online sales for the eligible items, but lacks mobile-optimized content.

Vogue.com is reportedly readying a big relaunch. “The magazine, which redesigned its site in 2010, is amassing a bigger staff comprised of a mix of new hires and existing employees who will move over to the dot-com,” WWD reports. “The shift and addition of staff to vogue.com from the print publication has been in the works over the past six months.” Expect to see the finished product by New York Fashion Week, in the fall. 

Do state sales taxes affect ecommerce? Suggesting as much, new research shows that sales dropped for Amazon when states took their cut. “In states that have the tax, households reduced their spending on Amazon by about 10%compared to those in states that don’t have the levy,” Bloomberg reports, citing researcher from Ohio State University. “For online purchases of more than $300, sales fell by 24%.” 

7-Eleven continues to build up its mobile prowess with a new promotion that gets consumers to download its mobile application and talk about the brand on social media. The convenience store chain's "Pizza for Life" sweepstakes will deliver free pizza to one lucky tech-savvy pizza lover. The newest campaign highlights the growing role that mobile plays for 7-Eleven in building in long-term engagement through an app through one-off promotions.