Affiliate Programs and Affiliate Reviews
Amazon.com’s fourth-quarter earnings skyrocketed 71 percent, as shoppers spent more than ever during a holiday season that improved over the previous year for retailers on and off the Web. Despite the sluggish economy, Amazon did well throughout the year, drawing shoppers with its Kindle e-reader and deals on an immense selection of goods ranging from alarm clocks to stuffed zebras.
Venture capitalists invested less money in U.S. startups in the fourth quarter and showed signs of spreading out those fewer dollars among more companies, reflecting continued caution amid uncertainty about the economy. The shaky economy has meant that startups are less likely to find buyers or complete initial public offerings.
AOL is shaking loose from Time Warner and heading into the next decade the way it began this one, as an independent company. Unlike the 1990s, though, when AOL got rich selling dial-up Internet access, it starts the 2010s as an underdog, trying to beef up its Web sites and grab more advertising revenue.
Amazon.com is trying to get more people to buy the electronic books that are compatible with its Kindle gadget by offering free software for people to read them on a computer. The Seattle-based online retailer said Thursday that it will release an application called “Kindle for PC” in November.
Amazon.com has agreed that it won’t remove e-books from U.S. users’ Kindle electronic readers without their permission, as part of a proposed settlement of a lawsuit over the online retailer’s deletion of a George Orwell novel from a high school student’s e-reader.