Luxury firms move to make Web work for them - NYTimes.com

BERLIN — The luxury goods industry, struggling through a recession that has threatened some well-known names with extinction, is trying to cast off the kid gloves that have hampered its efforts to get a grip on technology.

Because of continuing legal battles over online sales of counterfeit goods, concerns about undermining carefully honed brand images and a history of costly failures, many in the fashion business remain wary of the Internet. But executives say that attitudes are softening as brands realize that the Web provides one of the last untapped sources of potential growth...