Yahoo! is not alone in defining its strategy as working out what its customers (260m unique users every month) are looking for, and then trying to give it to them. (71. )[The first thing they want is to become better informed about products and prices.]“We operate our business on that belief,”says Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s chief executive. (72. )[Amazon became famous for books, but long ago branched out into selling lots of other things too; among its latest ventures are health products, jewellery and food.] Apart from cheap and bulky items as garden rakes, Mr Bczos thinks he can sell most things. And so do the millions of people who use eBay.
(73.) [And yet nobody thinks real shops are finished, especially those operating in niche markets.] (74.) [Many bricks-and mortar bookshops still make a good livings as do flea markers.] But many record shops and travel agents could be in for a tougher time. Erik Blachford, the head of lAC’s travel side and boss of Expedia, the biggest internet travel agent, thinks online travel bookings in America could quickly move from 20% of the market to more than half. (75.)[Mr Bezos reckons(估计)online retailers might capture (夺取)10—15% of retail sales over the next decade.] That would represent a massive shift in spending.