Talk Shop Online
Mid-Day, August 24, 1998

Its two in the morning and you suddenly wake up with a start realising that you've completely forgotten it's your wife's birthday and you have not brought home a gift. Don’t fret, you could still creep out of bed and order her favourite book/music album and surprise her with it in the morning. All this sitting in your bedroom -- using the internet.

Online shopping, to give it a name, is catching on in India, and the sites which offer you the convenience to shop online are multiplying. It is now possible to buy on impulse, without having to brave the scorching heat and getting lost in the crowds.

It is a whole new experience and a pleasant one at that. It is accessible round the clock. Though the community of the privileged internet users is relatively small in India, it is a matter of time before it expands with the entry of private Internet Service Providers (ISPs).

It has been a while since Rediff On The Net (www.rediff.com) started selling movie tickets online. And the move has caught the fancy of die-hard moviegoers.

New movie releases like Godzilla, Grease and Kareeb also feature on the site, and the demand for tickets show no signs of dwindling. Rediff has even started hosting online competitions, which help promote the movies. People from South Mumbai have no qualms about travelling to far-flung suburbs to catch the latest flick... whether at Movietime or Cinemax. The ease with which one can book seats online compares to nothing else. After that, all that is left to do is to haul yourself there, grab some popcorn and sit back and enjoy the show.

Rediff has also introduced online shopping from August 15. It allows you to pay online using credit cards from anywhere in the world. Whatever you order will be delivered to your doorstep.

To ensure high quality service, the e-commerce service is based on high-end Intel architecture powered by a Pentium II Processor Netfinity Server and IBM Net Commerce software. Federal Express will take care of the package shipping. You can choose from over 40,000 music titles at the Rediff Music Store and 100,000 titles at the Rediff Book Store and avail of discounts up to 40 per cent.

You can also make bookings at over 180 carefully chosen hotels in India at the Rediff Hotel Reservation Centre. Apart from being able to browse, search and place online orders and make payments online, you can access interviews with Indian and international authors, exclusive previews of the finest books published in India, listen to the latest Indian hits on Real Audio and, of course, read book and music reviews.

Mumbai Mart (www.mumbaimart.com) has also introduced shopping online from August 15. It has products available under leather goods, household products, electronics and accessories. The modus operandi is a little different from Rediff. You send an e-mail with your phone number and the item code. The item will then be delivered to your house and the payment is to be made in Indian rupees.

Another recently launched site is that of India Bookshop. If there is a book that you want and have not found the time to venture out and acquire, don't fret. At http://www.indiabookshop.com you can take your pick from over 10,000 titles. There is a fair balance of Indian and imported books and magazines, and various categories like general, fiction, non-fiction, children's educational and technical.

It's quite a simple process. The shopping cart allows you to add to your purchase, and when you are ready to check out, the total payable is automatically calculated. Then the books are delivered free at your doorstep, which is when you make the payment. As an initial offer, books are available at a 10 per cent discount over their regular list price. Soon the service is to be extended to people in New Delhi, Calcutta, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

Shoppers' Stop (http://www.shoppersstop.com/) is speciality chain of garment and accessory retail stores, with outlets in Mumbia, Bangalore and Hyderabad is now attempting to bring the shopping experience to every Indian home.

It is unique in the sense that allows you to do some window shopping first and then gives you the option to examine the good personally before purchasing there. One gets a chance to choose from a array of brands -- Levi's L…Philippe, Allen Solly, Walt Disney, RayBan and Reebook, to name just few.

Though the Internet has be around in India since the past three years only, it is becoming increasingly clear that we are on the threshold of something extremely exciting. Apart from being inexhaustible source of information and entertainment, the internet entering a completely new league of e-commerce.