Technology

Listen in as these movers and shakers discuss their digital retail startups and how they’ve broken through the boundaries of tradition.

A panel of retail and mobile experts will discuss how to determine the best mobile strategy for your brand.

Your mother hates your tattoos. So does your Apple Watch, apparently. Tattooed wrists can prevent the Apple Watch's heart rate sensor from functioning properly, according to some customers. Since the Apple Watch uses your heart rate to determine whether you're wearing it, you might not be able to use Apple Pay, receive notifications, place calls or use certain apps if you have tattoos on your wrists. Some Apple Watch wearers on Reddit and Twitter complained about the tattoo issue, and Apple blog iMore confirmed that the problem exists.

What are WiFi implementation best practices for reaching goals? First, work closely with store operations and marketing to get budget e

Sportswear outfitters like Under Armour and Nike look increasingly like tech companies, with apps and digital ecosystems that stretch far beyond their traditional fitting rooms and football deals. In the age of the Fitbit and Apple Watch, where web-connected fitness is increasingly de rigueur, the winner of the health-tracking arms race could potentially secure a gold mine from shoppers looking for the best way to break a sweat.

For all the people that think seminars are essential industry learning experiences, there are just as many that think they're more time and effort than they're worth. Setting aside the time and going out of your way is usually avoided by most if possible. Webinars offer a much more flexible and accommodating experience, however. They make it much easier to learn without having to leave your office, living room or even your bed! Yet despite this, many businesses across the world still don't take proper advantage of the facilities available to them, meaning they miss out on valuable opportunities to help their business expand and advance.

It's 2 a.m. and you're changing your baby when you realize you've just used up your last diaper. Or you go to reach under your sink to grab another roll of toilet paper only to discover you've forgotten to order more. This isn't the sad, black-and-white world of late-night infomercials, but real life, Amazon.com says. The company is rolling out new hardware called the Dash button that promises to solve these scenarios. It's a small physical button that you can stick wherever, and press when you want to order more of something. 

When talking about retail, we're often left wondering, what's next? What are some of the technologies that will revolutionize the retail industry going forward? So, as far as what may be next for retail, after virtual reality technologies have established themselves, this is the next stage: haptic retail. Enabling online shoppers to not just see a product, but to touch it, feel it and truly evaluate it from every possible angle from the comfort of their own home.

Someday soon, buying items online may require you to smile before paying, no matter how high the price. At least, this is where Alibaba Group Holdings Inc.'s new technology seeks to lead us. Earlier this week, Alibaba Founder and Chairman Jack Ma unveiled the company's "Smile to Pay" system, which will allow users to confirm their identity by face-recognition technology rather than with passwords or other digital tokens. Ma showed off the new system in a presentation at the opening of the CeBit technology conference in Hanover, Germany.

U.K.-based startup Powa Technologies has developed PowaTag, a payment technology that allows consumers to purchase a product by simply taking a photo of it on their smartphone, making virtually any ad shoppable. Some of the most unique places for these shoppable ads have included bus stop windows and taxicab screens. 
The PowaTag platform combines technologies, including Bluetooth beacons, digital audio watermarks, QR codes and embedded social media links, to enable consumers to scan an image and purchase instantly via their smartphone.