On CE - For Dealers, Distributors and OEMs of Consumer Electronics throughout EMEA

Bedding, why bedding? Pixmania in France will launch Sombed, its own brand of bedding.

In Russia, Eldorado will exchange until the end of October outdated appliances and electronics in more than 50 product categories, giving customers 20% discount against the price of the new purchase.

Media Markt will halt the use of promotional prices and empower each Media Markt store to compare its prices with all competitors (online and offline) on a daily basis.

Everywhere you look the economy pushes retailers to adopt change, to experiment, and to re-format. Store footprints are shrinking, retailers are mixing brick with click models, and retailers try out new categories... beds, bicycles, solar, white goods, small appliances, and more.

Not all retailers make these moves from a defensive position. Czech-based retailer Okay plans to develop a franchised store business. According to Okay’s Marketing Director Ludek Kovac, the company is now testing the model to create a franchised store network in the future. According to Incoma GfK, sales fell for four of the six largest chains in the Czech Republic but Okay last year saw sales increase by 10% to €185M.

Whether from defense or offense, this vortex of experimentation brings us to a time where retailers watch each other closely, trying to learn from one another as much as from their own inventions.

The Wall Street Journal reports Sony plans to pay for full control of mobile joint venture Sony-Ericsson-- kicking Telefon AB L.M. Ericsson out and integrating smartphone, tablet, handheld gaming and PC businesses in the process.

The 50-50 joint venture was created in 2001, and is currently the 6th biggest mobile vendor in the world. It achieved early success by porting Sony brands (including Walkman and Cybershot) to mobile devices, before losing mobile market share to both Nokia and Apple.

Meanwhile the long-planned "Playstation Phone," the Xperia Play, fell flat on launch with sales remaining relatively low.

Analysts at JP Morgan estimate the deal could total more than $1.3 bilion-- depending on agreements between the 2 companies over Ericsson patents.

Sony and Ericsson decline to comment on the story by the time of writing.

Go Sony Itches to Return to Mobile Arms Race

IHS iSuppli reports Amazon will sell the new Kindle Fire tablet at a "razor-thin margin on sales" of both devices and digital content-- in order to promote physical product sales from the Amazon online store.

The analyst estimates the Kindle Fire costs around $192 to make, with additional manufacturing expenses rising the total price to $209.63. The device itself will cost $199 on shelves.

While commentators say the Kindle Fire will make profit through digital content sales, iSuppli insists the Kindle Fire will actually "promote sales of the kinds of physical goods that comprise the majority of Amazon’s business"-- the physical products the online retailer generates profits from.

Thus, Amazon has a potential secret weapon-- an Amazon-only platform making online purchases easier (if not more customer-friendly) than ever, encouraging the online purchases of everyday goods.

IHS iSuppli also says the Kindle Fire has potential to become the no. 2 selling tablet on the market (following the iPad), even if it technically "represents an enchancement on the e-book reader."

Go Amazon Sells Kindle Fire at Low Profit Margin to Promote Online Merchandise Sales

With hardly any noise (and few noticing) Google opens the first "Google Store"-- a "Chromezone" shop within a London PC World branch.

The polar opposite of over-hyped Apple retail launches, the small "shop within a shop" only sells Chromebooks and accessories (such as headphones) and will run for the 3 months leading to Christmas, the London Evening Standard reports.

Staffing the Chromezone are "specially trained Chromebook experts."

"It's still very, very early days" Arvind Desikan from Google UK says on this first step towards physical retail.

Other than the London "Chromezone," Chromebooks are only available online-- a business strategy questioned by Samsung. In fact, Google says 80% of laptop sales are through stores (according to its research).

A second similar store will open in Essex next week, and Google plans to open more pilot stores worldwide in the future. Should the Chromezone experiment be successful, it is very easy to imagine Google playing the Apple-style retail game, over-hyped Google-only stores and all. After all, Google now owns Motorola Mobility now...

Go Google's First Store Pops Up in London (London Evening Standard)