Play.com
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Play.com | |
 |
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| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1998 |
| Headquarters | Jersey, Channel Islands |
| Industry | DVD, music, books, electronics & gadgets, video games, retailer |
| Products | play.com playusa.com playtrade.com |
| Website | Play.com |
Play.com is a UK-based online retailer of DVDs, CDs and other electronic products. Founded in 1998, Play.com was one of the first online retailers of the UK. It is the third biggest online retailer in the UK, according to traffic monitor Hitwise, and it is in the top 50 globally. Play.com was ranked second on the November 2006 UK "Hot Shops List" compiled by IMRG and Hitwise.
Because the company ship from Jersey rather than the UK itself, they are exempt from collecting VAT charges on cheaper items, thus allowing them to set aggressively competitive prices. [1]
[edit] History
It was founded in 1998 under the name Play247.com, but re-branded as Play.com in 2000. Play.com originally sold region 1 and 2 DVDs only, but has since expanded its range to include CDs and video games and other electronic items. Since 2004 it has sold books and electronics, and in 2006 it started selling personal computers, posters & T-Shirts.
The site was originally popular because it stocked every DVD available and offered free delivery on all items. It now has over 3,000,000 items for sale and most recently added a feature called PlayTrade (like Amazon Marketplace) allowing other retailers to list their products on the site.
