Google, Inc.

Mountain View, Calif. – Google is reportedly testing the inclusion of live chat with businesses linked directly within search results. According to TechCrunch, a search results card will show consumers whether a business they have search for is available for chat, and then immediately launch a Google Hangouts chat if help is in fact available.

Google is upping the ante in its competition with Apple by working with mobile carriers to install Google Wallet payment technology on every Android smartphone sold by AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon.

Beginning later this year, Google Wallet — complete with its tap-and-pay functionality — will come pre-installed on Android smartphones sold by Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile. Google has also purchased some technology and intellectual property from payments firm Softcard to make Google Wallet better.

New York -- The mobile payments war continues to heat up. In a post on its blog, Google said it partnering with the three of the nation’s largest wireless carriers — AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile — to bring its Google Wallet mobile payment app to their Android phones later this year.  

Google also said it has purchased some technology and intellectual property from payments firm Softcard (formerly known as Isis) to make Google Wallet better.

There’s a reason why so many shoppers love Wegman’s. A Valentine’s Day promotion spotted the day before the holiday in a Buffalo-area store featured twin ribeye steaks, packaged ready-for-the-flame in a disposable, heart-shaped broiler pan.

New York -- There’s a reason why shoppers love Wegman’s. A Valentine’s Day promotion spotted Friday, in a Buffalo-area store, featuring twin ribeye steaks, packaged ready-for-the-flame in a disposable, heart-shaped broiler pan is one small example as to why.
 

Wegmans Food Markets, Costco, Publix and CVS are among the highest ranked companies in terms of corporate reputation, according to a new poll.

The 16th annual Harris Poll Reputation Quotient study ranked the reputations of the 100 most visible companies. Scores range from excellent (scores of 80+) to poor (scores of 50 to 64).

In another sign technology advancements are turning everyday life into the stuff of science fiction, Microsoft recently unveiled a new holographic computer system called HoloLens. Slated for official release this fall, HoloLens layers interactive 3-D holograms on top of the user’s physical surroundings, providing an “augmented reality” experience.

It may be hard to believe (considering its financial troubles), but Sears was the most popular U.S. department store on Facebook during the 2014 holiday shopping season, according to a new study. 

The data also show that Walmart.com was the most popular mass merchant store site.