Biden Taking Big Stick to Big Tech

| Mike O'Brien

President Joseph Biden, in a sweeping executive order, is seeking to limit the power of big tech companies, including extra scrutiny of mergers and acquisition to check their monopolistic tendencies. It covers 72 different actions, including a reinstatement of net neutrality and asking the FTC to challenge prior “bad acquisitions.”

Hits of the Week 7-12-21

| David Hurwitz

week of 7/12/21 Prepping for 2021 Holiday Shipping – When It’s Already Perpetual Peak Having experienced significant pain in Q4 2020, when millions of orders showed up late, many retailers … Continue Reading →

Driving Toward Interoperability for Warehouse Robots

| Mike O'Brien

There has been a steady proliferation of autonomous mobile robot makers. This while demand has grown for AMRs in order fulfillment, as ecommerce booms and labor is tight. But can different warehouse robots play nice together? Two members of a standards group explain how it’s happening in this MCM CommerceChat podcast.

Fetch Robotics Acquired By Zebra for $290M

| Mike O'Brien

Zebra Technologies, a provider of hardware and software for warehouse fulfillment and inventory management, has acquired Fetch Robotics for $290 million, after an initial investment and partnership. Zebra saw a good fit between its workflow software and inventory/pick management devices and Fetch’s AMR capabilities.

O+F Advisor 7/7/21

| David Hurwitz

week of 7/7/21 Driving Toward Interoperability for Warehouse Robots There has been a steady proliferation of autonomous mobile robot makers. This while demand has grown for AMRs in order fulfillment, … Continue Reading →

Breaking Down New EU VAT Changes

| Mike O'Brien

As of July 1, the EU is updating how retailers calculate Value-Added Tax (VAT) when selling goods into member countries. This extends a 2015 change to include low-cost ecommerce goods under 22 Euros. Peter Boerhof of Vertex helps us better understand the implications for sellers in our latest MCM CommerceChat podcast.