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To: John Carragher who wrote (69904)	10/9/2007 4:13:03 AM
From: manalagi	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 213183

John, my experience with online shopping is that I Google the product I want (e.g. flat screen lcd tv), then I got various advertisers, which sometimes include Amazon. Then I compare prices including shipping charges. I have not bought from Amazon since the price was always higher than other online specialty stores. I do admit that Amazon is a unique concept, but placing it in the same class with the other 3 horsemen? Not in my book. Althought I have benefited by shorting the stock over a year ago, I don't dare to do this again in the near term.

To: John Carragher who wrote (69904)	10/9/2007 11:48:58 AM
From: Stock Puppy	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 213183

Additional point about why people shop at Amazon: security - similar to one of the reasons why department stores are popular, even if the little stores have somewhat lower prices. When you shop at Amazon, either buying products directly sold by Amazon or through one of their partner portals (or whatever you call them) or individual third party, you have some sort of satisfaction guarantee - that you will receive the item or if there is a problem with the item, you will be able to return it with the backing of Amazon if there is a problem with the partner/third party. Some people feel secure looking for lowest price and buying direct (taking the chance of being cheated). For others, Amazon is a well established name and credit card info isn't being put in a zillion different places on the internet. For me, I'll compare prices and if through Amazon it's a few dollars more, I usually go with Amazon, unless I did business with the other company previously or if the other company is well established. If the $ difference is much larger I'll consider the headaches involved if something goes wrong with the deal - and yes Amazon is not perfect in that regard either, but like a dept store they will eventually take care of you, unlike a small store where the owner will kick you out :-). BTW I do not mean to disparage small stores, for B&M, I actually prefer shopping in those type of stores rather than dept stores, but I've seen a lot of $#!^ in little B&M stores also. Well I once bought some stuff through Amazon partner- it arrived defective and the partner was dragging its feet in doing anything. I complained through Amazon's system and the company finally sent a refund in exchange for the item, delaying, it seemed, to the last second. I would hate to think what would have happened if I purchased direct from them.