The weekend is insight! 👀

In this last day of the work week, we've got some great news to help you end it on a high note. Here’s a quick snapshot of what we’ll be covering:

• Apple unveils its newest business: showing ads on your iPhone
• Walmart continues to exceed Amazon in e-commerce and ad sales.
• Mastercard is under fire from retailers over its new 'buy now, pay later' scheme.
• Amazon is increasing seller fees for the holidays to offset rising cost inflation.

Top Retail and E-commerce Stories

The Search for the Next Big Revenue Driver is On: Apple Expands its Ad Business

Apple is getting into the ad business. The tech giant announced that it will begin showing search ads in its App Store. This move is part of Apple's larger effort to increase its services revenue.

Some people may find the inclusion of advertising in the News and Stocks applications to be an affront. After all, the iPhone is designed as a high-end gadget. Now, a portion of ad income from the Today tab of the News app goes to publishers, but it's unclear how much. Most notably, Apple permits publishers to advertise within their stories and retain most of the revenue.

The Ultimate Showdown: Walmart is Crushing Amazon in E-commerce and Ad Sales

Walmart is kicking Amazon's butt. Walmart continues to exceed Amazon in e-commerce and ad sales. The company's growth in online ad sales was more than twice that of Amazon, according to a report from Ad Age. This is largely due to Walmart's focus on traditional retail advertising, while Amazon has been investing more in digital marketing.

Mastercard Under Fire: Retailers balk at new 'buy now, pay later' scheme

Mastercard is under fire from retailers over its new 'buy now, pay later' scheme. Mastercard has begun informing merchants and their banks that it will charge them 3% of a purchase price each time a customer chooses to use the new program. According to these sources, Mastercard will automatically enroll businesses in its new buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) service. However, retailers have a choice whether or not they want to participate.

Some of the country's largest businesses were blindsided by the pricing. Many of them have already reached separate agreements with credit-card issuers and BNPL providers that prevent them from competing on a service level. Others, on the other hand, are welcoming the new offering, albeit that the 3% is more expensive than any of Mastercard's usual terms for accepting credit cards, yet it is still less than what most standalone buy now, pay later services charge.

The Amazon Corner

Amazon's Double-Dip Holiday Tax: Amazon Raises Seller Fees for Christmas

Sellers, brace yourselves for higher fees! Amazon's latest effort to combat rising prices includes raising fulfillment costs during the holiday season, transferring some of its increased expenses onto the millions of merchants that use the site to sell their products.

From Oct. 15 to Jan. 14, third-party sellers who use Fulfillment by Amazon will have a 35-cent fee per item sold in the U.S and Canada, as stated in an email to sellers Tuesday by the company. For merchants using FBA, Amazon manages picking, packing and shipping items purchased.The holiday charge is in addition to any other fees that sellers incur for utilizing FBA services. These expenses are determined on a per-piece basis depending on the size, category, and weight of the item.

A LITTLE MORE

• Despite Facebook's exit from the industry, advocates for live shopping claim that their moment is approaching.
• Stitch Fix and other similar fashion subscription services may be suffering from ‘box fatigue.’
• Worksport has just announced their brand new online e-commerce platform.

FUN FACT

68% of online shoppers who fall in the 31-44 and 55-65 age groups spend the most money shopping online.

QUICK TIP

Try this. Make sure your website is optimized for search engines. This means having high-quality content, keyword-rich titles and descriptions, and a well-designed layout.