IBM

Armonk, N.Y. –- IBM projects a strong holiday shopping season with online sales projected to increase 15% during the five-day period between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday. The biggest increase in online sales is expected on Cyber Monday, predicted to grow 15.8%, followed closely by Thanksgiving with a projected increase of 15.6%.   

Armonk, N.Y. –- IBM has released new high-speed analysis and criminal investigation software that is designed to uncover hidden criminal threats buried inside massive volumes of disparate corporate data. IBM i2 Enterprise Insight Analysis (EIA) can find non-obvious relationships within hundreds of terabytes of data and trillions of objects in just seconds.   

Indianapolis -- The Finish Line has launced a new mobile app aimed at providing services and conveniences that reward members of its Winners Circle loyalty program with points and loyalty perks. The chain  teamed with IBM and IBM Business partner PointSource on the development of the app, which was designed using the IBM MobileFirst application development portfolio to capture the attention of sports enthusiasts and provide a rewarding user experience.

Finish Line and IBM have created a new mobile app to enable the operator of more than 1,000 athletic footwear and apparel stores to fulfill its omnichannel vision.

Finish Line said the new app is focused on providing services and conveniences that reward its Winners Circle loyalty program customers with points and perks, reinforce brand interactions, improve customer service and sales and also provide  timely information about customers’ favorite product releases.

New York -- For the second year in a row, Apple ranks as the most valuable brand in the world, followed by Google, on Interbrand’s 15th annual Best Global Brands Report. Apple was valued at $118.9 billion, up 21% over last year, while Google was valued at $107.43 billion, up 15%. Rounding out the top five were Coca-Cola, IBM and Microsoft. It was the first time in the history of the Best Global Brands report that two global brands – not just one – had a brand value that exceeded $100 billion.

Emeryville, Calif. – E-commerce technology provider Sellpoints has developed "Natural Selection," a natural language product selector. The solution uses the IBM Watson artificial intelligence platform to understand a shopper's intent, so instead of guiding shoppers through a series of complicated questions and checkboxes, Natural Selection allows them to type in phrases or questions in natural language.    

Armonk, N.Y. – IBM is introducing new partners developing apps based on its Watson artificial intelligence platform and world headquarters for its Watson Group, as well as new cognitive services that will be available on IBM Bluemix, IBM's cloud-based platform for mobile and Web app development.

Ottawa, Canada – Price intelligence technology provider 360pi, is collaborating and integrating with IBM to facilitate more automated and dynamic pricing for joint customers. The resulting solution leverages 360pi’s real-time price intelligence for exact and “like” products within IBM’s cloud-based omnichannel pricing platform.