the buzz log

Recession? What recession? If you ask us, the tremendous number of Web searches on "black friday deals 2009" are an indicator that the holiday shopping season may be a very profitable one for retailers.

For those who don't know, Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving, during which stores across the country try to one-up each other with outrageous sales. This being early November, the big day is still weeks away, but aggressive shoppers are already scoping out the various deals.

Over the past week, we've seen big Search bumps on "black friday 2009," "black friday ads," and "black friday rumors 2009." And indeed, there are a lot of rumors floating around. Some blogs predict an epic battle between Wal-Mart and Amazon. Others wonder if the Sears ad has anything worth fighting the crowds for. Also buzzing: Best Buy's "VIP contest."

We have no idea which store will offer the best deals to groggy shoppers, but we can safely predict that the searches are only going to get bigger. Buyer beware...