From the in-store kiosk, customers can search a database of more than three million individual items sold by Borders, including books, music, and videos. For example, by simply entering a book title or author at the kiosk, a user can determine the quantity and location of copies in that particular store, as well as in nearby Borders stores. They can also find out a wealth of information about the book, the author, and related titles.
Similar information is available for CDs and videos.
With so many items to index and provide access to, the choice of search engine was a critical component of the kiosks. Borders opted for the AltaVista Search Developer's Kit because it offered a highly customizable, proven technology that could be implemented quickly, and because it was flexible enough to adapt to meet emerging needs. So the integration of online and in-store was always at the heart of what we call our convergence strategy. We wanted to provide a multi-channel shopping experience that our customers could customize at their leisure, and the kiosks were the answer to that. After entering information at the kiosks, customers will get a map showing the location of the book in the store, the cost, and the number of copies in stock.