Applebee’s parent DineEquity Inc. is working on strategies to drive traffic by targeting specific consumers and the emotional connection they have with the casual-dining brand, the company said after reporting second-quarter results on Tuesday. At sister brand IHOP, revitalization efforts are continuing to drive momentum.

India's top e-commerce company Flipkart said on Tuesday it had raised $1 billion (Rs 6,000 crore) in funds as it battles US giant Amazon for supremacy in the hyper-competitive local market. Flipkart, set up in 2007 by two former Amazon employees, said Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC was among those to participate in the fundraising, the latest cash injection into the e-commerce market.

According to Westpac, it is utilizing Carta Worldwide’s HCE technology for its three month NFC-enabled mobile payments trial in New Zealand, and the payments systems is compatible exclusively with Android smartphones equipped with the most recent software updates. Shane Howell, the chief product officer of Westpac said that the trial is the initial steps toward a fully digital wallet in the country and that they expect their mobile wallet will be available to customers in early 2015.

Alibaba may not be the leading name in China’s e-commerce scene for much longer. Singapore’s YuuZoo and the Shanghai Media Group are planning to launch a new social media and e-commerce platform that intends to rival Alibaba in China. The new platform will not only cater to the traditional Internet audience, of course, as it will also seek to engage mobile consumers that have become enthralled with the idea of mobile commerce. The new platform will seek to link consumers and advertisers to social media networks that have e-commerce features. The platform will also leverage Shanghai Media’s expansive broadcast network to connect …

U.S. Bank is testing a new mobile application in partnership with the Minnesota Twins that leverages the camera on an iPad to speed up credit card applications for baseball game attendees. The test enables fans attending the Major League Baseball team’s games at Target Field, the team’s home stadium, to easily apply for a Minnesota Twins Rewards MasterCard, which is issued by U.S. Bank. The test is the latest example of how U.S. Bank is investing in photo banking as an overall imaging strategy.

Zappos has reportedly been testing a new mobile personal shopping assistant called “AskZappos” since June 2014. According to CNet, AskZappos lets mobile shoppers send images and then locates the desired products as well as other recommended items on the Zappos site. Customers can send requests for information through channels including Instagram, text and email. AskZappos was developed by Zappos’ San Francisco-based Zappos Labs team and currently a team of stylists at Zappos Labs headquarters is personally responding to customer requests. However, AskZappos will eventually provide automated service based on image recognition technology. Zappos is owned by Amazon.com.

A new iPhone is imminent and again there is much fascination in the payments world as to whether Apple will finally join the near field communications (NFC) fray. It now appears that the iPhone 6, which is expected in September, will be the device that sees Apple enter the mobile payments market. As with all Apple launches, speculation has already begun and there are strong rumors that the device will feature NFC and an embedded secure element, but will not support host card emulation (HCE). For years, card issuers considering a mobile strategy have asked “what about iPhone?” They have been unable …

Get ready for a major upgrade at a future Hilton hotel stay. Beginning next year, guests can kiss the hotel’s front desk goodbye. The check-in process once a staple of the hotel experience will soon be relegated to the trash bin of history. Soon, all you will need is your smartphone to access a room at a Hilton property.

Square first came to fame with a credit card reader you could plug into your iPhone jack. But next year, the company’s signature device will be on its way to obsolescence as the U.S transitions to a new kind of credit card that verifies purchases with an embedded computer chip. In anticipation of this sweeping change in the way Americans pay, Square designers and engineers have been working on new hardware the company hopes will not only navigate that change, but make Square the first and best option for the millions of merchants who will need to make the switch.

IKEA is embracing omnichannel shopping with new mobile functionality that allows users of its mobile catalog application to save their favorite items as a shopping list to be used on the Web site or in-store, and also allows for the creation of shopping lists compiled from multiple publications issued by the home-furnishings retailer. The Sweden-based company unveiled the new app in conjunction with the release of its 2015 catalog , which focused on bathroom and bedroom furnishings and is themed, “Where the Everyday Begins and Ends.” Although the new list functions are relatively easy to use on a smartphone, the richer content …