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The Marketplace Reader

Technology is the new retail therapy

Melissa Kaplan Aug 18, 2008

Americans love technology, and the stats are proving it. Consumer electronic sales 4.8 in July, according to U.S. government estimates. The Financial Times reports the jump is thanks to sales of flat screen TVs, computer games, digital music players and newer items like the iPhone and Amazon’s Kindle, to name a few. I mean, what else are you going to do when it’s too expensive to go anywhere? Case in point, turning your house into a vacation spot. From the Financial Times:

The release of Apple’s new $200-$300 3G iPhone had supposedly cash-strapped customers lining up outside its stores. Amazon, the online retailer, saw its shares surge last week after a Wall Street analyst predicted strong sales of its $359 Kindle wireless electronic book reader.

Some electronics retailers have sought to exploit the frugal mood to drive sales. Amazon is urging customers who want to save money to skip their vacations and invest in electronics instead, arguing that its “great selection of MP3 players, speaker docks, and other accessories will make your house feel like a five-star resort.”

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