A new online consumer spending survey conducted by PCData, Reston, VA, and Goldman Sachs, New York, released yesterday revealed a 60 percent increase in overall shopping revenue via the Internet, which the company said tops $900 million. The data was obtained from a study of Web-based shopping patterns conducted from Dec. 3 to Dec. 5.
The survey found unprecedented consumer online buying in nearly all product and service categories including pet supplies, which were reportedly up 32 percent — a jump from $7 million to $23 million in a week. PCData said children’s toys and entertainment products saw the most activity with children’s toy and product Web sites ranking No. 1 at 1.3 million buyers, followed by Web sites selling recorded music, which topped just over 1 million.
Of all participants surveyed, PCData found that users were turning to online shopping primarily for convenience (52 percent) followed by selection (13.1 percent) and price comparison (12.7 percent).
The survey consisted of 3,199 home-based Internet users.
