More spending Online

More shoppers than ever shifted a significant chunk of their Christmas spending online, according to internet traffic analyst Hitwise. Hitwise data shows that the 2004 Christmas season saw the strongest ever performance for the internet retail sector in the UK, with online retailers experiencing a 23 per cent increase in traffic from December 2003. From December 2003 to December 2004 the sector experienced a period of particularly healthy growth between August and December 2004, with market share of UK Internet traffic directed at online shopping websites increasing from just over 10 per cent in August to more than 12 per cent in the final month of the year.

The highest performing week during December was the week ending December 4. The first week of the month saw market share of online traffic to retail sites surpass 13 per cent as online shoppers sought to beat the Christmas crowds and avoid the last-minute pre-holiday rush by searching for the best deals and making gift purchases online.

The top 20 UK online retail websites for December included eBay, Amazon, Kelkoo and Argos, as well as the websites of several major high street computer and electronics chains: Currys, Comet and PC World all performed strongly throughout the pre-Christmas period. A popular gift this Christmas was clearly the portable MP3 player, with the iPod and its various imitators flying out of stores around the UK in December. Subsequently, both Apple's iTunes and the newly-relaunched Napster MP3 download site saw a massive peak in traffic on Christmas day. December 25 saw both sites increase their market share amongst all sites tracked by Hitwise by more than 500 per cent and 150 per cent respectively since December 23rd, as users rushed online to download music for their new gadgets.