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if a brand brings out a new soft drink and a user has a history of buying the company’s existing products, they may receive money off the new drink, whereas someone who has never expressed an interest through their purchases would pay full price. Similarly, a customer whose loyalty card data suggests they shop for a family might get offered a discount on a larger version of a product they already regularly buy.

Good old-fashioned reading is on the rise thanks to the booming popularity of e-readers. In 2007, a study by the National Endowment for the Arts found that half of 18-24-year-old Americans read no books for pleasure. The e-book era may be changing that. A Sony-commissioned survey conducted in May found that 40 percent of e-reader owners report reading more than they did with print books. Amazon says its customers buy roughly three times as many books after getting a Kindle. And finally, smartphone apps have re-popularized classic games and toys. The much-anticipated Scrabble iPad app hit the market this fall after the wide adoption of Newtoy’s Scrabble knockoff, Words With Friends. Electronic Arts has turned the classic Lite Brite into a digital experience.