For years, there was little innovation in eCommerce (both in technology and business model). Online price comparisons was the biggest (and pretty much only) value-add for consumers for many years.

This has changed in the last 3-4 years – think Social Commerce, Group Shopping, Private Sales, Open Source Technologies, Effectiveness of Marketplaces and Mashups to name a few. All this has led to great shopping experiences.

Then there are other factors – market growth and potential (only about 6% of retail is online, but influences about 80% in most segments), more and more consumers are comfortable shopping online, capital efficiency of setting up a business, easy (and relatively) immediate validation of business models, and still a huge potential for improvements on all ends – customer experience, supply chain, shipping & handling.

It is not hard for anyone to notice this potential. For VCs, well, it is their bread & butter!

- JASMEET SAWHNEY

via (61) Why is e-commerce such a hot area in venture capital now? – Quora.